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Us 



PUBLIC SCHOOL LaWS 



OF 



LOUISIANA 



AND 



SANITARY REGULATIONS 



OF THE 



STATE BOARD OF HEALTH 



Eleventh Compilation 

BY 

CHAS. F. TRUDEAU 

Under the Direction of 

T. H. HARRIS, STATE SUPERINTENDENT 

1919 




Baton Rouge 

Ramlreg-Jones Printing Compaii.\ 

1919 




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PUBLIC SCHOOL LAWS 



OF 



LOUISIANA 



AND 



SANITARY REGULATIONS 



OF THE 



STATE BOARD OF HEALTH 



Eleventh Compilation 

BY 

CHAS. F. TRUDEAU 

Under the Direction of 

T. H. HARRIS, STATE SUPERINTENDENT 

1919 



Baton Rouge 

Ramires-Jones Printing Company 

191* 






Members 
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION 

(1919) 

Hon. Robert Martin St. Martinville, La. 

Hon. Ralph S. Thornton Alexandria, La. 

Hon. John A. Haas, M. D ..Opelousas, La. 

Captain E. L. Kidd Ruston, La. 

Hon. John Legier, Jr New Orleans, La. 

Hon. Thos. H. Harris, Ex Officio, State Super- 
intendent of Education Baton Rouge, La. 



n„ Of ©* 

NOV I f92i} 



THREE IMPORTANT CIRCULAR LETTERS BY THE 
STATE SUPERINTENDENT 

CIRCULAR NO. 522 

September 19, 1917. 
To Parish Superintendents and 

Presidents of School Boards. 
Gentlemen : 

The purpose of this letter is to urge that the compulsory 
attendance law be rigidly enforced this session. 

The following are the principal provisions of the compulsory 
attendance law: 

1. The law applies to children between the ages of seven 
and fourteen; that is, children who have passed their seventh 
birthday and have not reached their fifteenth birthday. 

2. The law does not apply to a child who has completed the 
seventh grade, even if such child comes within the age limits 
mentioned above. 

3. The law affects children attending private schools as 
well as those attending public schools. 

4. Children are required to enter school not later than two 
weeks after the opening of the session. Where the school is 
divided into two terms the children who had not reached their 
seventh birthday before the opening of the first term are re- 
quired to enter school during the first two weeks of the second 
term, if in the meantime they have reached their seventh birth- 
day. 

5. Children are required to attend school one hundred forty 
consecutive days, if the session is that long; if the session is 
shorter, they are required to attend the entire session. 

6. The law does not apply to a child who is required to 
work in order to support a widowed mother. 

7. After the schools have enrolled all of the children that 
they can accommodate the other children for whom no facilities 
are provided are not affected by the law. 

8. The district courts have jurisdiction over all violations 
of the law. Violations should be reported to the district attorney 
for prosecution. 



9. Every day absent from school constitutes a separate 
violation of the law. 

10. Truants, that is, children over whom parents or guar- 
dians have no control, constitute a separate class, and should be 
turned over to the juvenile courts, that is, to the district judges 
for investigation and sentence. 

11. Children living more than two and one-half miles from 
a school of suitable grade, and for whom free transportation is 
not furnished, are not affected by the law. 

12. Parish school boards have authority to furnish free 
textbooks to children whose parents or guardians are unable to 
furnish them. 

In the towns and cities which employ police officers it should 
not be difficult to enforce the compulsory attendance law, for 
arrangements can be made by which the police departments will 
act as attendance officers. This can be done at a minimum of 
expense to the school authorities. Since the cities and larger 
toAvns usually have adequate school facilities, the failure of any 
of these to enroll all of the children between the ages of seven 
and fourteen and to keep them in school regularly will mean 
failure in the performance of an important duty by some one. 

Even in the villages and country districts, the proper co- 
toperation between school and district court officials should 
result in securing much good from the attendance law. 

The law should be enforced, and those parents who consider 
the compulsory attendance law an unjust infringement upon the 
liberties of a free American citizen, should be told in convincing 
terms that it is ihe law, and that enforcement will be insisted 
upon. Public sentiment will uphold the school and court officials 
in the rigid enforcement of this law, for the public appreciates 
the fact that an ignorant, heartless parent has no right to stand 
in the way of the State's efforts to make a good citizen of his 
child. 

I shall ask you later for a statement in detail of the efforts 
of your parish in the enforcement of the provisions of the at- 
tendance law. 

Yours sincerely, 

' T. H. Harris, 

State Superintendent. 

THH-WHT 



CIRCULAR NO. 653 

June 14c, 1918. 
To Parish Superintendents and Presidents of Parish School 

Boards. 
Gentlemen : 

I know that you are very deeply concerned as to the school 
financial situation here in the General Assembly. Our status 
at the present time is as follows with reference to the State 
school revenues for the session of 1918-1919,: 

1. One and thirteen-twentieths mills on the assessment of 
1918, carried in the General Appropriation Bill, approximately 
$1,200,000.00. 

2. Appropriated from the General Fund to the Current 
School Fund, in the General Appropriation Bill, $47,500.00. 

3. Appropriated out of the Rural Progress Fund, approxi- 
mately $40,000.00. 

4. One-half mill on the assessment of 1918 appropriated to 
the Current School Fund (in a separate bill), $400,000.00. 

(Note — The General Appropriation Bill has passed the House, 
and there seems to be no opposition to the one-half mill bill.) 

5. Total of above, $1,737,500.00. 

It seems certain that the revenues listed above can be de- 
pended upon. This provides, approximately, a State appropria- 
tion of $3.20 per educable child. 

6. There is a state-wide ^og tax bill before the House, the 
revenues from which will go to the public schools (unless the bill 
should be changed). This will provide, approximately, $200,- 
000.00. This would give a total of $1,937,500.00, or $3.60 per 
educable child. 

I will be in position a little later to notify you definitely as 
to the State revenues that you can depend upon next session. 

To take effect after next session, the following Constitutional 
Amendments providing school revenues are now before the 
General Assembly: 

(1) A State tax of one and a half mills on a hundred per- 
cent assessment, $50,000.00 a year of which will be used for the 
support of the Delgado training school in New Orleans. 

(2) A Constitutional Amendment placing the parish as- 
sessment at a hundred percent of the value, and reducing the 



maximum millage to five mills, one and a half mills of which 
will be devoted to public education. 

(3) A Constitutional Amendment levying a mill and a half 
in each parish on a hundred percent assessment for the schools. 
(There is a provision in this amendment to the effect that the 
total parish millage for schools in Orleans will be two and three- 
fourths mills.) 

In all of the other parishes the total millage for schools, if 
the two amendments referred to in Nos. (2) and (3) should be 
adopted, would be three mills on a hundred percent assessment. 

This is a constructive program, and, so far as I am able to 
ascertain, sentiment here seems quite favorable to it. I shall 
keep you posted as matters progress here. 

Yours sincerely, 

T. H. Harris, 

State Superintendent. 

CIRCULAR NO. 660, PART I 

July 9, 1918. 
My dear Superintendent: 

I am enclosing herewith copy of an opinion recently issued 
by the Attorney General, Judge A. V. Coco, on the subject of 
the sale of Sixteenth Sections, or 'school lands. The opinion is 
to the effect that the parish school boards shall conduct the 
elections to authorize the sale of Sixteenth Sections and shall 
also conduct the sale. I have asked the State Auditor to give 
me a statement of the different steps that his office will require 
the school boards to take in selling these school lands. His re- 
quirements are as follows : 

1. The school board should order the election and advertise 
same for thirty days at three of the most public places in the 
township and at the Court House door. 

2. The election should be held by a member of the school 
board or by a Justice of the Peace. 

3. The result of the election should be sent to the Auditor 
of Public Accounts. 

4. The Auditor of the Public Accounts will issue his order 
to the school board directing that the land be sold. 



5. The sale should be advertised for thirty days in the 
official journal. 

6. , Have the land appraised by three sworn appraisers. 

7. Sell in quantities of not less than forty nor more than 
one hundred sixty acres. 

8. Sell for cash or for one-tenth cash and the balance in 
nine equal notes. 

9. Deduct costs of advertising and other expenses from cash 
payment and remit balance to the Auditor of Public Accounts, 
together with proces verbal of sale and notes for unpaid portion. 

10. No commission shall be charged for selling Sixteenth 
Section school lands. 

Yours sincerely, 

T. H. Harris, 

State Superintendent. 



^VRTICLES OF THE CONSTITUTION HAVING 
REFERENCE TO PUBLIC EDUCATION 

(Art. 53. Limitation of Legislative Powers.) 

No money shall ever be taken from the public treasury, di- 
rectly or indirectly, in aid of any church, sect or denomination 
of religion, or in aid of any priest, preacher, minister or teacher 
thereof, as such ; and no preference shall ever be given to, nor 
any discrimination made against, any church, sect or creed of 
religion, or any form of religious faith or worship ; nor shall 
any appropriation be made for private, charitable or benevolent 
purposes to any person or community; provided, this shall not 
apply to the State Asylum for the Insane and State Institution 
for the Deaf and Dumb and State Institution for the Instruction 
of the Blind, and the charity hospitals and public charitable 
institutions conducted under State authority. 

(Art. 230. Educational Institutions Exempt from Taxation.) 

The following shall be exempt from taxation, and no other, 
viz : All public property, places of religious worship, or burial, 
all charitable institutions, all buildings and property used ex- 
clusively for public monuments or historical collections, colleges 
and other school purposes, the real and personal estate of any 
library, and that of any other library association used by or 
connected with such library, all books and philosophical appa- 
ratus, and all paintings and statuary of any company or asso- 
ciation kept in a public hall ; provided, the property so exempted 
be not leased for purposes of private or corporate profit and 
income. ****** 

(Art. 231. Poll Tax of One Dollar.) 

The Oeneral Assembly shall levy an annual p^U tax of one 
dollar upon every male inhabitant in the State between the ages 
of twenty-one and sixty years, for the maintenance of the public 
schools in the parishes where collected. 

(Art. 232. School Tax on a Vote of Property Taxpayers.) 

The State tax on propertj^ for all purposes whatever, includ- 
ing expenses of government, schools, levees and interest, shall 
not exceed in any one year, six mills on the dollar of its assessed 
valuation, and, except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, 



9 

no parish, municipal or public board tax for all purposes what- 
soever shall exceed in any one year ten mills on the dollar of 
valuation ; provided, that for giving additional support to public 
schools, and for the purpose of erecting and constructing public 
buildings, public schoolhouses, bridges, wharves,- levees, sewerage 
work and other works of permanent public improvement, the 
title to which shall be in the public, any parish, municipal cor- 
poration, ward or school district may levy a special tax in excess 
of said limitation, whenever the rate of such increase and the 
number of years it is to be levied and the purposes for which the 
tax is intended, shall have been submitted to a vote of the prop- 
erty taxpayers of each parish, ward or school district entitled 
to vote under the election laws of the State, and a majority of 
the same in numbers and in value voting at such election shall 
have voted therefor. 

(Art. 248. Free Schools; for Whom; Apportionment of Funds.) 

There shall be free public schools for the white and colored 
races, separately established by the General Assembly, through- 
out the State, for the education of all the children of the State 
between the ages of six and eighteen years ; provided, that where 
kindergarten schools exist, children between the ages of four 
and six may be admitted into said schools. All funds raised by 
the State for the support of public schools, except the poll tax, 
shall be distributed to each parish in proportion to the number 
of children therein between the ages of six and eighteen years. 
The General Assembly, at its next session, shall provide for the 
enumeration of educable children. 

(Art. 249, as amended by Act 28 of 1908. State Superintendent.) 

, There shall be elected by the qualified electors of the State a 
Superintendent of Public Education, who shall hold his office for 
the term of four years, and until his successor is qualified. His 
duties shall be prescribed by law, and he shall receive an annual 
salary of five thousand dollars. 

(Art. 250. State Board of Education; Parish Boards and Officers.) 

The General Assembly shall provide for the creation of a 
State Board and Parish Boards of Public Education. The Parish 
Boards shall elect a Parish Superintendent of Public Education 
for their respective parishes, whose qualifications shall be fixed 



10 

by the Legislature, and who shall be ex-officio secretary of the 
Parish Board. The salary of the Parish Superintendent shall 
be provided for by the General Assembly, to be paid out of the 
public school funds accruing to the respective parishes. 

(Art. 251. French May Be Taught.) 

The general exercises in the public schools shall be conducted 
in the English language; provided, that the French language 
may be taught in those parishes or localities where the French 
language predominates, if no additional expense is incurred 
thereby. 

(Art. 252. Application of the Poll Tax.) 

The funds derived from the collection of the poll tax shall 
be applied exclusively to the maintenance of the public schools 
as organized under this Constitution, and shall be applied ex- 
clusively to the support of the public schools in the parish in 
which the same shall be collected, and shall be accounted for 
and paid by the collecting officer, directly to the treasurer of the 
local school board. 

(Art. 253. Private and Sectarian Schools Cannot Receive Public School 
Funds.) 

No funds raised for the support of the public schools of the 
State shall be appropriated to or used for the support of any 
private or sectarian schools. 

(Art. 254. School Funds— Of What They Shall Consist.) 

The school funds of the State shall consist of: 1st. Not less 
than one and one-quarter mills of the six mills tax levied and 
collected by the State. 2d. The proceeds of taxation for school 
purposes as provided by this Constitution. 3d. The interest on 
the proceeds of all public lands heretofore granted or to be 
granted by the United States for the support of the public 
schools, and the revenues derived from such lands as may re- 
main unsold. 4th. All funds and property, other than unim- 
proved lands, bequeathed or granted to the State, not designated 
for any other purpose. 5th. The proceeds of vacant estates fall- 
ing under the law to the State of Louisiana. 6th. The legislature 
may appropriate to the same fund the proceeds of public lands 
not designated or set apart for any 'other purpose, and shall 
provide that every parish may levy a tax for the public schools 



11 



therein, whicli shall not exceed the entire State tax; provided, 
that with such a tax the whole amount of parish taxes shall not 
exceed the limits of parish taxation fixed by this Constitution. 
The City of New Orleans shall make such appropriations for the 
support, maintenance and repair of the public schools of said 
city as it may deem proper, but'not less than eight-tenths of one 
mill for one year ; and said schools shall continue to receive from 
the Board of Liquidation of the City Debt, the amounts to which 
they are now entitled under the Constitutional amendment 
adopted in the year 1892. 

(Art. 255. School Funds— Of What They Shall Consist.) 

The police juries of the several parishes and boards of trus- 
tees and municipal councils of incorporated cities and towns 
(the Parish of Orleans excepted) shall levy, collect and turn over 
to the parish school boards of their respective parishes, cities or 
towns, the proceeds of at least three mills of the annual tax 
which they are empowered to levy on each dollar of the assessed 
valuation of the property thereof. Provided, that cities and 
towns that are not exempted by the terms of their charters from 
the payment of parish taxes and which are subjected to the 
similar burdens of taxation as are the parishes shall not pay 
this tax, as same is included in the taxes imposed by the parish 
in which the town is situated, unless the parish boards of school 
directors of that parish certify that the needs of the school can 
be met by a smaller levy of such taxes. 

(Art. 256. Louisiana State University and A. & M. College.) 

The Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Me- 
chanical College, founded upon land grant of the United States 
to endow a seminary of learning and a college for the benefit of 
agriculture and mechanic arts, now established and located in 
the City of Baton Rouge, is hereby recognized ; and all revenues 
derived and to be derived from the seminary fund, the Agricul- 
tural and Mechanical College fund, and other funds or lands 
donated to or to be donated by the United States to the State of 
Louisiana for the use of a seminary of learning or of a college 
for the benefit of agriculture or the mechanic arts, shall be 
appropriated exclusively to the maintenance and support of the 
said Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Median- 



12 



ical College; and the General Assembly shall make such addi- 
tional appropriations as may be necessary for its maintenance, 
support, and improvement, and for the establishment, in connec- 
tion with said institution, of such additional scientific or literary 
departments as the public necessities and the well-being of the 
people of Louisiana may require. 

The Tulane University of Louisiana, located in New Orleans, 
is hereby recognized as created, and to be developed in accord- 
ance with the provisions of the legislative act No. 43, approved 
July 5th, 1884, and by approval of the electors, made part of 
the Constitution of the State. 

(Art. 257.) 

The Louisiana State Normal School, established and located 
at Natchitoches; the Industrial Institute and College of Louis- 
iana, whose name is hereby changed to the Louisiana Industrial 
Institute, established and located at Ruston; and the Southern 
University, now established in the City of New Orleans,* for the 
education of persons of color, are hereby recognized; and the 
General Assembly is directed to make such appropriations from 
time to time as may be necessary for the maintenance, support 
and improvement of these institutions; provided, that the ap- 
propriation for the maintenance and support of the Southern 
University shall not exceed ten thousand dollars per annum. 

(Arl. 258. Interest Due the Townships.) 

The debt due by the State to the free school fund is hereby 
declared to be the sum of one million, one hundred and thirty 
thousand, eight hundred and sixty-seven dollars and fifty-one 
cents in principal, and shall be kept on the books of the Auditor 
and Treasurer to the credit of the several townships entitled to 
the same ; the said principal being the proceeds of the sales of 
lands heretofore granted by the United States for the use and 
support of free public schools which amount shall be held by 
the State as a loan, and shall be and remain a perpetual fund, on 
which the State shall pay an annual interest of four per cent, 
and said interest shall be paid to the several townships of the 
State entitled to the same, in accordance with the Act of Con- 
gress, No. 68, approved February 15th, 1843. 



*NoTB : Now at ScotlandviUe, La. 



13 

(Art. 259. Debt Due Seminary Fund.) 

The debt due by the State to the Seminary fund is hereby 
declared to be one hundred and thirty-six thousand dollars, be- 
ing the proceeds of the sale of lands heretofore granted by the 
United States to this State for the use of a seminary of learning, 
and said amount shall be kept to the credit of said fund on the 
books of the Auditor and Treasurer of the State as a perpetual 
loan, and the State shall pay an annual interest of four per cent 
on said amount. 

(Art. 260. Debt Due A. and M. College.) 

The debt due by the State to the Agricultural and Mechan- 
ical College fund is hereby declared to be the sum of one 
hundred and eighty-two thousand, three hundred and thirteen 
dollars and three cents, being the proceeds of the sale of lands 
and land scrip heretofore granted by the United States to this 
State for the use of a college for the benefit of agricultural and 
mechanical arts; the said amount shall be kept to the credit of 
said fund on the books of the Auditor and Treasurer of the 
State as a perpetual loan, and the State shall pay an annual 
interest of five per cent on said amount. 

(Art. 261. School Books for Indigent Pupils.) 

All pupils in the primary grades of the public schools 
throughout the Parish of Orleans, unable to provide themselves 
with the requisite books, an affidavit to that effect having been 
made by one of the parents of such pupils, or if such parents be 
dead, then by the tutor or other person in charge of such pupils, 
shall be furnished with the necessary books free of expense, to be 
paid out of the school funds of said parish ; and the School Board 
of the Parish of Orleans is hereby directed to appropriate an- 
nually not less than two thousand dollars for the purpose 
named, provided such amount be needed. 

(Art. 60. Establishment of Additional Educational or Charitable Insti- 
tutions.) 

No educational or charitable institution, other than the State 
institutions now existing, or expressly provided for in this Con- 
stitution, shall be established by the State except upon a vote of 
two-thirds of the members elected to each House of the General 
Assembly. 



14 

(Art. 210. Eligibility to Office.) 

No person shall be eligible to any office, State, judicial, pa- 
rochial, niTinicipal or ward, who is not a citizen of this State, and 
a duly qualified elector of the State, judicial district, parish, 
municipality or ward, wherein the functions of said office are 
to be performed. And whenever any officer, State, judicial, 
parochial, municipal or ward, may change his residence from 
this State, or from the district, the same shall thereby be vacated, 
any declaration of retention of domicile to the contrary not- 
withstanding. 

(Art. 232. Limitation of State Tax; Of Other Taxing Bodies; When 
and How Special Taxes May Be Levied.) 

The State tax on property for all purposes whatever, includ- 
ing expenses of government, schools, levees and interest, shall 
not exceed, in any one year, six mills on the dollar of its assessed 
valuation, and except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, 
no parish, municipal or public board tax for all purposes what- 
soever, shall exceed in any one year ten mills on the dollar oi 
valuation ; provided, that for giving additional support to public 
schools, and for the purpose of erecting and constructing public 
buildings, public schoolhouses, bridges, wharves, levees, sewerage 
work and other works of permanent public improvement, the 
title to which shall be in the public, any parish, municipal cor- 
poration, ward or school district may levy a special tax in excess 
of said limitation, whenever the rate of such increase and the 
number of years it is to be levied and the purpose or purposes 
for which the tax is intended, shall have been submitted to a vote 
of the property taxpayers of such parish, municipality, ward or 
school district entitled to vote under the election laws of the 
State, and a majority of the same in numbers, and in value voting 
at such election shall have voted therefor. 
(Art. 235. Inheritance Tax for Public Schools.) 

The Legislature shall have power to levy, solely for the sup- 
port of the public schools, a tax upon all inheritances, legacies 
and donations; provided, no direct inheritance, or donation, to 
any ascendant or descendant, below ten thousand dollars in 
amount or value shall be so taxed; provided, further, that no 
such tax shall exceed three per cent for direct inheritances and 
donations to ascendants or descendants, and ten per cent for 



15 



collateral inheritances, and donations to collaterals or strangers ; 
provided, bequests to educational, religious or charitable institu- 
tions shall be exempt from this tax. 

(Art. 236.) 

The tax provided for in the preceding article shall not be 
enforced when the property donated or inherited shall have 
borne its just proportion of taxes prior to the time of such 
donation or inheritance. 

(Art. 281, as amended by Act 197 of 1910. School Bonds and Special 
Taxes.) 

Municipal corporations, parishes or school, drainage, sub- 
drainage, road, navigation, or sewerage district, the City of New 
Orleans excepted, hereinafter referred to as subdivisions, when 
authorized to do so, by a vote of a majority in number and 
amount of the property taxpayers, qualified to vote under the 
Constitution and laws of this State, who vote at an election held 
for that purpose, after due notice of said election has been pub- 
lished for thirty (30) days in the official journal of the municipal 
corporation or parishes, and where there is no official journal, in 
a newspaper published therein, may "through their respective 
governing authorities" incur debt and issue negotiable bonds 
therefor, and each year while any bonds issued to evidence said 
indebtedness are outstanding, the governing authorities of such 
subdivision shall levy and collect annually, in excess of all other 
taxes, a tax sufficient to pay the interest, annually or semi- 
annually, and the principal falling due each year, or such amount 
as may be required for any sinking fund provided for the pay- 
ment of said bonds at maturity; provided, that such special 
taxes, for all purposes, shall not in any year exceed ten (10) 
mills on the dollar of the assessed valuation of the property in 
such subdivisions. 

No bonds shall be issued for any other purpose than that 
stated in the submission of the proposition to the taypayer, and 
published for thirty (30) days as aforesaid, or for a greater 
amount than therein mentioned; nor shall such bonds be issued 
for any other purpose than for constructing, improving and 
maintaining public roads and highways, paving and improving 
streets, roads and alleys, purchasing or constructing systems of 



16 

waterworks, sewerage, drainage, navigation, lights, public parks 
and buildings, together with all necessary equipments and fur- 
nishing, bridges and other works of public improvement, the 
title to which shall rest in the subdivision creating the debt, as 
the case may be ; nor shall such bonds run for a longer period 
than forty years (40) from their date or bear a greater rate of 
interest than five per cent (5) per annum, or be sold for less 
than par. The total issue of bonds by any subdivision for all 
purposes shall never exceed ten per centum (10) of the assessed 
valuation of the property in such subdivisions. 

Municipal councils shall have authority to create within 
their respective limits one or more sewerage districts ; and noth- 
ing herein contained shall prevent drainage districts from being 
established under the laws of this State shall, in addition to the 
powers hereinabove granted, have the further power and au- 
thority to levy and assess annual contributions or acreage taxes 
on all lands situated in such districts, for the purpose of pro- 
viding and maintaining drainage systems, not exceeding fifty 
(50) cents per acre for a period not exceeding forty (40) years, 
when authorized to do so by a majority in number and amount 
of the property taxpayers of said district, qualified to vote under 
the Constitution and laws of this State, who vote at an election 
held for that purpose and in the manner provided in the first 
part of this Article, and said drainage districts, through the 
Boards of Commissioners thereof, when authorized as herein- 
above provided, may incur debt and issue negotiable bonds there- 
for, payable in principal and interest out of and not to exceed in 
principal and interest, the aggregate amount to be raised by said 
annual contributions or acreage taxes during the period for 
which the same are levied. No such drainage bonds shall be 
issued for any other purpose than that for which said contribu- 
tions or acreage taxes were voted or run for a longer period than 
forty (40) years from their date or bear a greater rate of interest 
than five (5) per cent per annum or be sold for less than par. 

"When the character of any land is such that it must be 
leveed and pumped in order to be drained and reclaimed, the 
Board of Drainage Commissioners of the district in which the 
land is situated, shall, upon petition of not less than a majority 
in acreage of the property taxpayers,- resident and non-resident, 



17 

in the area to be affected, ascertain the cost of drainage and re- 
claiming said land and incur debt against said land for an 
amount sufficient to drain and reclaim it, and issue for said 
debt negotiable bonds running not longer than forty (40) years 
from their date and bearing interest at a rate not exceeding 
five (5) per centum per annum, payable annually or semi- 
annually, which bonds shall not be sold for less than par; and 
said Board of Drainage Commissioners shall levy annually upon 
said land forced contributions or acreage taxes in an amount 
sufficient to maintain the drainage of said land and to pay the 
interest, annually or semi-annually, and the principal falling 
due each year, or such amount as may be rec^uired for any sink- 
ing fund provided for the payment of said bonds at maturity; 
provided, that such forced contribution or acreage taxes, for all 
purposes shall never exceed Three Dollars and Fifty Cents 
($3.50) per acre per annum. 

The police juries of the various parishes throughout the State, 
for the purpose of constructing highways and public buildings for 
the parish, and the governing authorities of municipal corpora- 
tions, for the purpose of paving or improving streets or alleys, 
or for other municipal improvements, after making provision for 
the payments of all statutory and ordinary charges, may fund 
into bonds running for a period not exceeding ten (10) years, 
and bearing interest at a rate not exceeding five (5) per centum 
per annum, which bonds shall not be sold for less than par, the 
avails of the residue of the ten (10) mill tax authorized by 
Article 232 of the Constitution of Louisiana." 

AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE 
STATE OF LOUISIANA 

Adopted at Ani Election Held on November 5, 1918. 

ACT NO. 48 

Joint Resolution proposing an amendment to Article 257 of the 

Constitution relative to the State Educational Institutions 

and the maintenance of same. 

Section 1. Be it resolved by the General Assembly of the 

State of Louisiana, two thirds of all the members elected to each 

house concurring, That an amendment to Article 257 of the 



18 

Gonstitution of the State of Louisiana be submitted to the 
qualified electors of the State for their approval or rejection at 
the Congressional election to be held on the first Tuesday next 
following the first Monday in November, of 1918, said proposed 
amendment to be as follows: 

Article 257. The Louisiana State Normal School, established 
and located at Natchitoches; the Louisiana Industrial Institute, 
established and located at Ruston; the Southwestern Louisiana 
Industrial Institute, established and located at Lafayette; and 
the Southern University for the education of persons of color, 
are hereby recognized ; and the General Assembly is directed to 
make such appropriations from time to time as may be necessary 
for the maintenance, support and improvement of these insti- 
tutions. 

ACT NO. 191 

A Joint Resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution 

of the State of Louisiana, limiting the rate of State, 

parish, municipal, public boards and special taxation. 

Section 1. Be it resolved by the General Assembly of the 

State of Louisiana, two-thirds of all the members elected to each 

House concurring. That an amendment to the Constitution of 

the State of Louisiana be proposed and submitted to the qualified 

electors of the -State, for adoption or rejection, as follows, to-wit : 

1. The State tax on all property whatever, except those 
taxes otherwise provided for in this Constitution, including 
expense of government, schools, levees, public roads, and public 
debt and the interest thereon shall not exceed, in any one year 
three mills on the dollar of its assessed valuation ; provided that 
if the proposed amendment to the Constitution levying a special 
annual State tax for the support of the public schools, of one 
and one-half mills, submitted by the General AssembV for adop- 
tion or rejection at the general Congressional election in Novem- 
ber, 1918, shall not be adopted, then the limitation of three mills 
hereinabove specified shall be fixed at four mills. 

2. Except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, no 
parish, (Parish of Orleans excepted), municipal, levee or public 
board tax for all purposes whatsoever, shall exceed in any one 
year five mills on the dollar of assessed valuation provided that 
wbere any municipality is, by its charter or by law, exempt 



19 



from the payment of parish taxes, it may levy a tax rate in any 
one' year at not exceeding ten mills on the dollar of assessed 
valuation ; the police juries of the several parishes and boards of 
trustees and municipal councils of incorporated cities and towns 
(Parish of Orleans excepted) shall levy, collect and turn over to 
the parish school boards of their respective parishes, cities or 
towns, the proceeds of one and one-half mills, instead of the 
three mills provided in Article 255 of the Constitution, and 
under conditions therein set forth, 

3. The State good roads tax of one-fourth of one mill levied 
under Article 291 of the Constitution is hereby fixed at one- 
eighth of one mill and the Confederate veterans pension tax of 
one mill levied under Article 303 of the Constitution is hereby 
fixed at one-half of one mill ; and said taxes shall constitute, and 
be, a part of the three mills hereinabove first specified. 

4. In all districts, parishes or other subdivisions of the State, 
where, under- the law, bonded indebtedness has been incurred, 
the governing authority shall impose only sufficient annual tax 
to maintain the security heretofore given under the law for 
such obligations and to pay the interest and the indebtedness 
as the same may become due. The levy of the tax to meet such 
maturing obligations shall be ample, but no substantial excess 
shall be allowed to accumulate ; provided that nothing herein 
shall be construed as affecting Act No. 4 approved June 8, 1916, 
and subsequently adopted as a part of the Constitution concern- 
ing the funding of certain debts of the City of New Orleans and 
the issue of serial bonds, etc., provided, that the five mill limit 
of taxation for parishes, municipalities, levees and public boards, 
as set forth in paragraph two herein, shall not apply to such 
special taxes as may be required each year to pay their respec- 
tive maturities the principal and interest on any bonds now out- 
standing or that may hereafter be issued under the provisions of 
the Constitution of this State. 

5. In all cases where under existing laws, other than the laws 
providing for bonded debts, a specified number of mills has been 
voted at a special tax election as a special annual tax to provide 
for public improvements, or the maintenance of public education 
or public improvements, the governing authority which levied 
such tax shall reduce the rate thereof to one-half of the millage ; 



prpvified that this requirement shall not Jipply in any case where 
a parish has before the adoption hereof assessed taxable property 
at actual value ?ind adjusted the special tax rate accordingly*. 

Section 2, Be it further resolved, etc., That the provisions 
of this amendment shall not alter, amend, or repeal any pro- 
vision of the Constitution except as the same are inconsistent 
therewith, 

ACT NO. 217 
Joint Resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of 
the State of Louisiana, making provision for the support 
of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and 
Mechanical College, the Louisiana State Normal School, 
the Louisiana Industrial Institute, and the Southwestern 
Louisiana Industrial Institute. 
Section 1. Be it resolved by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, two-thirds of all the members elected to each 
House concurring, that the following amendment to the Consti- 
tution of the State be submitted to the qualified electors of the 
State for their adoption or rejection at the congressional election 
to be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in the 
month of November, 1918, as follows: 

There shall be set aside annually out of the revenues of the 
State of Louisiana a sum equivalent to at least one-third of one 
mill on the assessed valuation of all the property in the State for 
the support of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural 
and Mechanical College at Baton Rouge, the Louisiana State 
Normal School at Natchitoches, the Louisiana Industrial Insti- 
tute at Ruston, and the Southwestern Louisiana Industrial In- 
stitute at Lafayette, and the General Assembly of Louisiana shall 
apportion said sum among said four institutions according to 
their several merits and necessities. 

ACT NO. 218 
Joint Resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution 
of the State of Louisiana, requiring each parish and the 
City of New Orleans, to levy annually a tax for the sup- 
port of public schools in each parish and in the said city. 
Section 1. Be it resolved by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, two-thirds of all the members elected to each 



21 

House concurring, That an amendment to the Constitution of the 
State of Louisiana be proposed and submitted to the qualified 
electors of the State, for ratification or rejection, as follows, 
to wit: 

There shall be levied by the police jury of each parish on all 
the taxable property therein an annual tax of one and one-half 
mills on the dollar of assessed valuation for the support of the 
public schools in each parish, provided that where a parish 
school board shall certify to the police jury that a smaller levy 
will satisfy the needs of the schools, the police jury shall make 
the smaller levy recommended by the school board, except that 
in and for the parish of Orleans the Board of Directors of the 
Public Schools of the parish of Orleans, or its legal successor, 
shall levy an annual tax not exceeding two and three-fourths 
mills for the support, maintenance, construction, and repair of 
the public schools of the City of New Orleans ; provided that this 
limitation on the City of New Orleans shall not be construed to 
prevent the people of New Orleans from voting a special tax 
under Section 18 of Act No. 4 of 1916, authorizing the voting of 
special taxes by the people of the City of New Orleans at a special 
tax election. And provided further that the provisions of this 
Article shall not apply to cities and towns that, under existing 
•laws, are exempt from the payment of parish taxes, and which 
under legislative authority, conduct, maintain and support public 
schools open and free to the youth of the parish in which said 
city or town is located, and which levy, collect and expend an- 
nually for the conduct, maintenance and support of said schools 
an annual tax of at least one and one-half mills on the dollar of 
the assessed valuation of said city or town. 

There shall be no overlapping school districts; nor subdis- 
tricts, except that if a parish-wide special school tax has been or 
may be voted, then there may be sub-districts, not overlapping, 
within such parish, provided that the total special taxes voted at 
special elections, whether parish-wide, or sub-district, or both, 
for public school support, under Article 232 of the Constitution, 
shall not exceed five mills on the dollar; and where there now 
exist any special taxes in excess of five mills, voted under said 
Article 232 of the Constitution for public school support, the 
same is hereby reduced to five mills. 



22 



ACT NO. 226 

Joint Resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of 
tlie ; State of Louisiana, levying a special State tax not 
exceeding one and one-half mills on the dollar for ,the 
benefit of public education. 

Section 1. Be it resolved by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, two-thirds of all the members elected to each 
House concurring, That an amendment to the Constitution of 
the State of Louisiana be proposed and submitted to the qualified 
electors of the State, for ratification or rejection, as follows, 
to wit : 

' ' There shall be levied on all the taxable property in the State 
of Louisiana an annual State tax of one and one-half mills on the 
dollar on its assessed valuation, for the support of the public 
schools; provided that of the amount derived from the levy on 
the City of New Orleans, fifty thousand dollars shall be paid 
annually by the State Treasurer to the Commission Council of 
the City of New Orleans for the support and maintenance of the 
Isaac Delgado Trade School of the City of New Orleans," 

Section 2. Be it further resolved, etc., That this amendment 
shall be submitted to the duly qualified electors of the State of 
Louisiana, in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution, 
to be voted upon at the General Congressional Election to be held 
in November, 1918, and there shall be printed upon the ballot: 
"For the amendment to the Constitution levying a special tax of 
one and one-half mills on the dollar for support of the public 
schools ; ' ' and ' ' Against the amendment to the Constitution levy- 
ing a special tax of one and one-half mills on the dollar for the 
support of the public schools;" and each elector shall indicate, 
as provided in the general election laws of this State, whether 
he votes for or against said amendment. 

ACTS OF THE LEGISLATURE 

(Exemptions from Jury Duty, S. 2, A. 89, '94.) 

The following persons shall be exempted from serving as 
jurors, but the exemption shall be personal to them, and when 
they do not themselves claim the exemption it shall not be suf- 
ficient cause for challenging any person , exempt under the pro- 
visions of this Act. * * * The Governor, Lieutenant Gov- 



23 

ernor, State Auditor, State' Treasurer, Secretary of State, Stl- 
perintendent of Public Education, their clerks and employees, 
and all public officers commissioned under the authority of the 
United States. * * * professors and school teachers while 
employed in teaching * * * 

(Bonds and Fines, S. 64, A. 214, '02.) 

All fines imposed by the several district courts for violation 
of law, and the amounts collected on all forfeited bonds in crim- 
inal cases, after deducting commissions, shall be paid over by the 
sheriff of the parish in which the same are imposed and collected, 
to the treasurers of the school boards in said parishes, and shall 
be applied to the support of the public schools as are applied 
the other funds levied for the purpose, the Parish of Orleans 
excepted. 

(Duty of Parish Superintendent and Parish School Board, S. 4, A. 45, 
'04.) 
It shall be the duty of the parish superintendent and of the 
president of the school board of the City of New Orleans to see 
that this Act be carried out, and that the full amount of the 
inheritance tax be duly collected, and it shall be the duty of the 
District Attorney for the various parishes throughout the State, 
when called upon by the parish superintendent or the president 
of the school board in the Parish of Orleans to take proceedings 
to enforce the provisions of this Act. 

(Inheritance Tax; How Paid and Distributed, S. 3, A. 45, '04.) 

In all cases where the inheritance tax appears to be due, it 
shall be the duty of the administrator, executor, or other officer 
in charge of the succession, or of the heir to pay over to the Tax 
Collector of the parish where the succession is opened the full 
amount of said inheritance tax and to present the receipt to the 
judge before obtaining a discharge or of being put in possession 
of the estate ; the surety on the bond of the administrator, exec- 
utor or other officer in charge of the estate shall be liable in 
solido with the officer for the full amount of the inheritance tax ; 
such taxes shall be distributed to the several parishes in accord- 
ance with Article 248 of the Constitution, 

Note — All inheritance taxes should be remitted to the State Treasurer, 
who will credit same to the Current School Fund. 



2i4 
INHERITANCE TAX IN FAVOR OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

ACT NO. 42 OF 1912 

Section 1. That Section 1 of the Act 109, of 1906, approved 
July 7, 1906, be amended and re-enacted so as to read as follows : 

That there is now and shall hereafter be levied, solely for the 
support of the public schools, on all inheritances, legacies and 
other donations mortis causa to or in favor of the direct descend- 
ants or ascendants or surviving wife or husband of the decedent, 
a tax of two per centum, and on all such inheritances or disposi- 
tions to or in favor of the collateral relatives of the deceased, or 
strangers, a tax of five per centum on the amount or the actual 
cash value thereof at the time of the death of the decedent. 

(Exemptions.) 

Section 2. (As amended by Act 51 of 1918.) Be it enacted 
by the General Assembly of the State of Louisiana, That Section 
2 of Act No. 109 of 1906, approved July 7, 1906, as amended and 
re-enacted by Act No. 42 of 1912, be amended and re-enacted so 
as to read as follows: 

That said tax shall not be imposed in the following cases : 

(a) On any inheritance, legacy, or other donation mortis 
causa to or in favor of any ascendant or descendant or surviving 
wife or husband of the decedent below ten thousand dollars in 
amount or value. 

(b) On any legacy or other donation mortis causa to or in 
favor of any educational, religious or charitable institution. 

(c) "When the property inherited, bequeathed or donated 
shall have borne its just proportion of taxes prior to the time of 
such donation, bequest or inheritance. 

But said tax shall be imposed on all personal property physi- 
cally in the State of Louisiana, whether owned by a resident or 
non-resident, and whether inherited under the law of this State 
or of any other state or country; and said tax shall be imposed 
on all personal property owned by residents of the State of 
Louisiana, wherever situate ; unless in any or all such cases such 
property shall be included in the exemptions above set forth in 
paragraphs (a), (b) and (c). 

(Manner of Taking Possession of Succession.) 

Section 3. It shall be unlawful for any heir, legatee or other 



25 



beneficiary of a donation mortis causa to take or be in possession 
of any part of the things or property composing the inheritance, 
•legacy or other donation mortis causa, or to dispose of the same 
or any part thereof, until he shall haVe obtained the authority of 
the court- to that effect, as hereafter provided ; and in case he 
shall so take or be in possession or shall so dispose of such things 
or property, or any part thereof, he shall no longer have the 
right of renouncing such inheritance or donation mortis causa, 
and shall remain personally liable for the tax thereon; but he 
may, without waiting for authority to do such acts as may seem 
necessary to preserve the property from waste, damage or loss. 

(Duty of Executor.) 

Section 4. The executor of the will of a person deceased, or 
the administrator of his succession, shall, after payment of his 
debts, proceed against the tax collector and all the heirs and 
legatees of the deceased summarily, by rule before the court 
which has jurisdiction of the succession, to fix the amount of tax 
due by each heir or legatee, and on trial thereof the court shall 
render judgment for the same against each heir or legatee, with 
interest and costs, as hereinafter provided. 

(Amount of Taxes to Be Deducted by Executor.) 

Section 5. The executor or administrator shall thereupon 
pay to the tax collector the amount of tax, with interest and 
costs, so fixed, on each inheritance, legacy or donation, out of 
the funds comprised therein, if sufficient. Should there not be 
sufficient funds, the court shall, on the application of the heir 
or legatee, grant an order for the sale of the property composing 
such inheritance, legacy or donation, or so much thereof as may 
be necessary, for the purpose of paying such judgment. If the 
same be not paid by the heir or legatee, or an order of sale be 
not granted, as above provided within thirty days after the date 
of the judgment, the court shall on the application of the ex- 
ecutor or administrator, grant an order of sale for the said pur- 
pose, as above provided, and the executor or administrator shall 
pay the said judgment out of the proceeds of the sale. 

Such sale shall be made in such manner, and on such terms 
and conditions as the court shall prescribe, and the expense 
thereof shall be borne by the heir or legatee. 



26 

(Duty of Executor,) 

Section 6. No executor or administrator shall deliver any 
inheritance or legacy until the tax thereon shall be fixed and 
paid, as herein provided ; otherwise he, together with his surety, 
shall be personally liable for said tax, with interest .and cost. 
And no executor or administrator shall be discharged until it is 
shown that all taxes under this Act, due by the heirs and lega- 
tees, have been paid, or until it is judicially determined by the 
process herein provided that no tax is due. 

(Duty of Legal Heir.) 

Section 7. In all cases in which an administration is not 
ordered by the court, the legal or instituted heir, or universal or 
residuary legatee, shall within six months after the death of the 
decedent, or, should there be a will, within the same time after 
the discovery of the same, present to the court a detailed descrip- 
tive list, sworn to and subscribed by him, of all items of property 
contained in and composing the estate of the decedent, and 
therein shall state the actual cash value of each such item at the 
time of the death of the decedent, and service thereof shall be 
made on the tax collector who shall have the right to traverse 
the same. Should the deceased have made special or particular 
legacies or donations mortis causa, the legatee shall also be 
served, and after summarily hearing the parties the court shall 
fix the amount of tax due as aforesaid by each such heir or 
legatee, and shall render judgment therefor, with interest and 
costs, against each of them, 

(Amount of Taxes to Be Deducted.) 

Section 8. In the same manner as provided in Section 5, the 
heir or universal or residuary legatee shall thereupon pay or 
take measures for the payment of the tax due on all special or 
particular legacies or donations. 

(Property May Be Sold to Pay Taxes.) 

Section 9. The heir or universal or residuary legatee may 
likewise obtain an order for the sale of the property of his in- 
heritance or legacy, or part thereof, for the purpose of paying 
the tax thereon. But if such tax be not paid, or such order of 
sale be not made within thirty days after the date of the judg- 
ment fixing the amount of the tax, a similar order for the same 



27. 



purpose shall be granted on the application of the tax collector, 
and thereunder any property forming part of the inheritance 
or legacy may be sold, and the proceeds thereof shall be applied 
to the payment of the tax with interest and costs. ' 

(Duty of Heir to See that Tax is Paid.) 

Section 10. The heir or residuary or universal legatee shall 
not deliver any legacy until the tax thereon shall have been 
fixed and paid; otherwise he shall be personally liable for the 
said tax, with interest and costs. 

(Search for Will; When Made.) 

Section 11. If during the six months next following the 
death of any person leaving property, movable or immovable, 
within this State, an administration of his succession be not 
applied for, or his legal or instituted heir or universal or residu- 
ary legatee do not apply to the court to be placed in possession 
thereof, as herein provided, the court shall ex parte and on the 
application of the tax collector grant an order directing that a 
search be made for the will of the deceased by a notary public, 
and in aid of the same may order that all persons having in their 
possession or control any books, papers or documents of the de- 
ceased or any bank-box, safe deposit vault or other receptacle 
likely or designed to contain the same, shall open such receptacle 
and exhibit the contents thereof, as well as all other books, papers 
and documents of the deceased, to the said notary. 

(Court May Appoint Executor.) 

Section 12. Should the said notary find any document ap- 
pearing to be the will of the deceased, he shall take possession of 
the same and produce it in court ; and on application of the tax 
collector, or of any party in interest, the court shall proceed to 
the probate thereof, as now provided by law. If an executor be 
therein appointed, the person named shall be notified, and if he 
do not within ten days after notification accept the appointment, 
and if within the ten days next following this delay no person 
entitled to be appointed dative testamentary executor shall apply 
for the appointment, then the Public Administrator in the Parish 
of Orleans, and in the other parishes the tax collector, shall be 
appointed dative testamentary executor of the said decedent, and 



28 

the administration of his succession shall proceed as herein di- 
rected and according to existing law. 

(Procedure Where No Will is Found.) 

Section 13. If the notary can find no will, he shall report 
the fact to the court ; and thereupon the tax collector shall pro- 
ceed against the legal heir or heirs of the deceased summarily 
by rule to fix the amount of tax due by him or them, and each 
of the heirs shall be ordered, within a delay to be fixed by the 
court, which may be extended from time to time, in the discre- 
tion of the court, to make and file a detailed descriptive list, 
sworn to and subscribed by him, of all the items of property 
contained in and composing the estate of the decedent, stating 
therein the actual cash value of each such item at the time of the 
death of the decedent, and the tax collector shall have a right 
to traverse the same. On trial of the rule the court shall fix the 
amount of tax due by each of the heirs, and shall render judg- 
ment for the same against each of them, and in such case, as well 
as in the cases mentioned in, Section 12, shall include in the costs 
payable by the heir or legatee a fee of not more than ten per cent 
on the amount of tax due by each heir or legatee in favor of the 
attorney for the tax collector. In the same manner and under 
the same conditions as provided in Sections 5 and 9 of this Act, 
such heirs or legatees shall have the right to procure the sale of 
their inheritances or legacies for the purpose of paying the tax 
due thereon, with interest, costs and attorneys ' fees ; and if pay- 
ment thereof be not made by the heir or legatee, or if an order 
of sale, as above provided, be not granted, within thirty days 
after the date of the judgment, the tax collector shall be entitled 
to a similar order, and thereunder any property forming part 
of the inheritance or legacy may be sold. 

(Any Heir May Institute Proceedings and Receive Fee.) 

Section 14. Should there be more than one legal or instituted 
heir or universal or residuary legatee any one of them may in- 
stitute the proceedings provided by this Act, and the others shall 
be made parties thereto and such heir shall be entitled to recover 
out of the mass of the succession one reasonable attorney's fee, 
besides his costs. 



29 

(Rights of Creditors Preserved.) 

Section 15. Nothing contained in this Act shall affect the 
rights of creditors of persons deceased or the rights of the cred- 
itors of the heirs or legatees of such persons, as established by 
the general law. 

(Legacy Indivisible.) 

Section 16. Each inheritance or legacy is indivisible, and 
must be accepted or renounced for the whole; and the heir or 
legatee shall not be entitled to be placed in possession of the 
same, and shall be without right or capacity to alienate any part 
thereof, until the tax on the whole shall have been fixed and 
paid, or until it shall have been judicially determined, in the 
manner herein provided, that no part of the same is subject to 
the tax imposed by this Act. 

Section 17 (as amended by Act 51, 1918). No bank, banker, 
trust company, warehouseman or other depository, and no person 
or corporation or partnership having on deposit or in possession 
or control any moneys, credits, goods or other things or rights of 
value for a person deceased, or in which he had any interest, 
and no corporation the stock or registered bonds of which are 
owned by a person deceased shall deliver or transfer such 
moneys, credits, stock, bonds or other things or rights of value 
to any heir or legatee of such deceased person, unless the tax due 
thereon under this Act shall have been paid, or unless it be judi- 
cially determined in the manner herein prescribed that no tax 
is due by such heir or legatee. Otherwise the person or corpora- 
tion so making delivery or transfer shall be liable for the said 
tax. But the order of a court of competent jurisdiction, direct- 
ing such delivery or transfer, shall be full authority for the same. 
Provided, however, that every executor must cause a true and 
faithful inventory to be taken by a notary public, in the manner 
prescribed by law, and no moneys, securities, property and effects 
of the deceased held on deposit as above mentioned shall be de- 
livered to him until said inventory or sworn statement giving a 
detailed statement of the property and its value shall be made 
and filed in court in the proceedings in which he is acting as 
executor. 

Provided that no bank or other having in its possession a safe 
deposit box or any property, enterable or deliverable by one or 



30 

more persons, shall, upon receipt of knowledge of the death of 
any such persons, permit entry thereunto or delivery thereof 
until after three days written notice to the Inheritance Tax 
Collector of the parish in which the property is situate and his 
written consent thereto. 

Section 18 of Act No. 109 of 1906, amended and re-enacted so 
as to read as follows: 

The burden of proving facts establishing exemption from the 
tax imposed by this Act is upon the person claiming exemption. 

All donations or transfers of property for inadequate consid- 
eration, within ninety days prior to the death of the owner 
thereof, shall be presumed to have been made in avoidance of the 
tax herein levied, and, unless said presumption shall be over- 
come by sufficient evidence, such property shall be deemed a 
part of the succession of the person who has so donated or 
alienated said property for purposes of computing the inheri- 
tance tax due by the succession, legatees or heirs of such person. 

(Jurisdiction.) 

Section 19. The District Court" of the last domicile of the 
deceased, and in the Parish of Orleans the Civil District Court, 
shall have original jurisdiction to hear and determine all the 
proceedings provided by this Act. In the case of a non-resident 
decedent, the District Court, or Civil District Court, of any 
parish in which he left property, movable or immovable, shall 
exercise such jurisdiction, and the court in which such proceed- 
ings shall be first begun shall have exclusive original jurisdiction 
thereof. 

(Unknown Heirs.) 

Section 20. Non-residents and unknown heirs and legatees, 
and those whose whereabouts are unknown, shall be represented 
by curator ad hoc appointed by the court, and all notices, cita- 
tions and demands prescribed by this Act shall be served on such 
officers. Though there be in any case more than one unknown 
or absent heir or legatee, all may be represented by the same 
curator. 

(Commissions of Tax Collectors.) 

Section 21. The tax collector spoken of and intended by this 
Act is the Sheriff and ex-officio Tax- Collector , of the parish in 



-31 



which was the last residence of the decedent, or in which is 
situated property of a non-resident decedent, and in the Parish 
of Orleans the Clerk of the Civil District Court. They shall re- 
ceive a commission of two per cent on their collections of taxes 
under this Act. 

(Compensation of Attorneys.) 

Section 22. In and for the Parish of Orleans the Governor 
shall appoint by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, 
for. a term of four years, an attorney at law, whose duty it shall 
be to advise, assist and represent the Clerk of the Civil District 
Court in the enforcement of this Act. For his services, except 
as provided in Sections 12 and 13, he shall receive a fee of four 
per cent on all taxes collected hereunder, payable out of the same 
before transmission to the Treasury. In all other parishes of the 
State the said duties shall be performed by the attorneys ap- 
pointed under existing law to assist the tax collectors in the 
collection of delinquent licenses, and the compensation of such 
attorney shall be as above provided. 

(Method of Fixing Value of Annuity.) 

Section 23. In fixing the value of any legacy or donation 
mortis causa which consists in whole or in part of an annuity 
or usufruct or right of use or habitation, the court shall consider 
the expectancy of life of the legatee or donee according to the 
table known as the American Experience Table of Mortality, at 
six per cent per annum compound interest. , 

(Delinquent Penalty.) 

Section 24. Taxes hereby levied shall bear interest at the 
rate of two per cent per month, beginning six months after the 
death of the decedent ; saving to any heir, legatee, or donee the 
right to stop the running of interest against him by paying the 
amcunt of his tax with accrued interest, or by tendering the same 
to the tax collector in the manner prescribed by the general law'; 
provided, however, that in cases in which the settlement of the 
succession is not unduly delayed, or in which the right of any 
party to receive an inheritance or legacy is contested, and in all 
cases in which the failure to pay tax on any legacy or inheritance 
within the period aforesaid is not imputable to the laches of the 



32 

heir or legatee, the court may, in its discretion, remit such 
interest. * 

(Costs to Be Borne by the Succession.) 

Section 25, The costs of all the proceedings under this Act 
shall be borne by the mass of the succession; provided, that in 
cases in which it seems to him equitable to do so the judge shall 
have the power to apportion the costs among the several parties, 
or allow any party to retain his costs out of any sum found to 
be due by him for tax hereunder. Provided, the provisions of 
this Act shall affect all successions not finally closed, or in which 
the final account has not been filed. 

(Accepting and Regulating Donations, Act 158, '04.) 

Section 1. The Board of Education for the State of Louis- 
iana; the Board of Directors of the public schools of each and 
every parish in the State, the Parish of Orleans included, shall 
have the power to accept and administer donations mortis causa 
or inter vivos for any educational or literary purpose whatso- 
ever, and it shall be lawful for any one to make such a donation 
of any description of property, and to any amount to any one or 
more of such boards. 

Sec. 2. The donor shall have the right to prescribe the man- 
ner in which the property shall be administered, and the objects; 
to which it or any part thereof, or the revenues thereof, shall be 
applied; provided, however, that property donated, cannot be 
made inalienable, but the donor thereof shall have the right to 
prescribe in what manner, and under what circumstances, the 
donees shall be empowered to sell the same, or any portion there- 
of, or to change any investments once made. 

Sec. 3. Said Board or Boards shall administer the property 
entrusted to them in conformity with the directions contained 
in the act of donation, and shall have all the powers needed in 
such administration, but can not mortgage nor encumber the 
donated property, except as may be prescribed in the act of 
donation. The said Board or Boards shall be entitled to no 
remuneration for their services, unless expressly granted in the 
act of donation. 

See. 4. The provisions of the laws of this State, relative to 
substitutions fidei commissa and trusts shall not be deemed to 



33 

apply or affect donations made for the purposes and in the 
manner provided in this Act, and all laws or parts of laws con- 
flicting with the provisions of this Act be, and the same are 
hereby repealed insofar as regards the purposes of this Act, but 
not otherwise; 

(Assessor's Fee for Assessing School Taxes, S. 1, A. 213, '08.) 

The tax assessor of each parish of the State ****** 
shall receive as an annual compensation for his labors, services 
and duties four per cent (4 per cent) of the first fifty thousand 
dollars ($50,000.00) aggregate amount of all State, parish and 
poll taxes assessed, and two per cent (2 per cent) on any excess 
over fifty thousand dollars ($50,000.00) ; provided that nothing 
herein shall be so construed as to allow assessors more than twO' 
per cent on special school taxes, and for his services, duties or 
labors in assessing or extending on the rolls any and all levee 
taxes the sum of one hundred dollars ($100), except where the 
parish for which the assessor is elected lies in more than one 
levee district, in which case he shall receive the sum of two per 
cent (2 per cent) on the aggregate amount of such taxes; pro- 
vided no assessor shall receive less than four hundred dollars 
($400) in any parish for each annual assessment of State, parish,, 
poll and all levee taxes. That the payment of this compensation 
shall be distributed between the State, parish, school boards, 
cities and towns and other taxing district or division in propor- 
tion to the amount received by each. 

(Powers of the District Board in Expropriations, S. 1492, R. S.) 

When land shall be required for the erection of a schoolhouse 
or for enlarging a schoolhouse lot, and the owner refuses to sell 
the same for a reasonable compensation, the District Board of 
School Directors shall have the power to select and possess such 
sites embracing space sufficiently extensive to answer the purpose 
of schoolhouse and ground. 

(Expropriation of Property for Public Schools; For Schoolhouse Sites, 
Act 208 of 1906, amending and re-enacting Act 227 of 1902.) 

Whenever the State or any political corporation of the same 
created for the purpose of exercising any portion of the govern- 
mental powers, in the same, or the board of administrators or 
directors of any charity hospital, or any board of school directors 



34 



thereof, or any corporation constituted under the laws of this 
State for the construction of railroads, plank roads, turnpike 
roads, or canals for navigation, or for the construction or opera- 
tion of water works or sewerage to supply the public with water 
and sewerage, (or for the piping and marketing of natural gas 
for the purpose of supplying the public with natural gas), or for 
the purpose of transmitting intelligence by magnetic telegraph, 
cannot agree with the owner of the land which may be wanted 
for its purchase, it shall be lawful for such State corporation, 
board of administrators, directors or persons to apply by petition 
to the district court, in which the same may be situated, or if it 
extends into two districts, to the judge of the district court in 
which the owner resides, and if the owner does not reside in 
either district, to either of the district courts, describing the land 
necessary for the purposes, with a plan of the same, and a state- 
ment of the improvement thereon, if any, and the name of the 
owner thereof, if known at present in the State, with a prayer 
that the land be adjudged to such State, corporation, board of 
administrators or directors upon payment to the owner of all 
such damages as he may sustain in consequence of the expropria- 
tion of said land for such public works; all claims for lands or 
damages to the owner caused by its taking or expropriation for 
such public work shall be barred by two (2) years' prescription 
which shall commence to run from the date at which the land was 
actually occupied and used for the construction of the works. 

All the existing laws for the forms and processes of expro- 
priation of property shall be applicable to the said act and 
section thus amended and re-enacted. 

(Relative to the Value of Grounds, S. 1493, R. S.) 

Should such landholder deem the sum assessed too small, he 
shall have the right to institute suit before any proper judicial 
tribunal for his claim; but the title shall pass from him to the 
school corporation. 

ACT NO. 90 OF 1906 

Section 1. That in order to provide for public education in 

the city of Lake Charles, a school board is hereby created for said 

city. Said board shall consist of five members, who shall be 

elected at large bj^ the qualified voters of said city. Each mem- 



35 



ber of said board shall be able to read and write the English 
language and shall be a duly qualified elector of said municipal- 
ity. The election for the members of said board shall be held 
under the general election laws of this State, and the members 
when elected shall be commissioned in the same manner as parish 
boards of school directors. They shall hold their office for terms 
of four years, and until their successors shall have been duly 
elected and qualified, except as hereinafter provided. All va- 
cancies that may occur in said board, whether caused by failure 
to qualify, by resignation, or by death, shall be filled at an elec- 
tion duly called within thirty days after said vacancy occurred. 
Each member shall qualify within thirty days after he has been 
commissioned, otherwise the office to which he is elected shall be 
deemed vacant. The electors residing in the City of Lake 
Charles shall be ineligible to serve as members of the parish 
board of directors of the public schools of Calcasieu Parish, 
Louisiana, and to vote for members of said body. It shall be the 
duty of the election commissioners serving at the polling places 
in Ward 3 of Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, to see that the pro- 
visions of this section are made effective. 

Section 2. That all elections for members of said board shall 
be called by the City Council, which shall appoint the commis- 
sioners of election and designate the polling places. All returns 
of election shall be made to this Council, which shall make such 
proclamation and do all other things in regard thereto as is 
required by law of returning officers of the parish. The first 
election under this Act shall be held on the day set apart by law 
for the congressional election, in the year 1906, and thereafter 
every two years on such congressional election day, after giving 
at least ten days' notice thereof by publication, in the official 
journal of said city; successors to those members of the board 
whose terms expire in said year, shall be elected in the manner 
above provided. The members so elected shall assume the dis- 
charge of the functions of their offices on the first Tuesday 
after the receipt of their commissions. The first board hereunder 
shall be appointed by the State Superintendent of Public Edu- 
cation, immediately after passage of this Act, and the members 
so appointed shall hold their offices until the congressional elec- 
tion in the year 1906, and until their successors shall have been 



36 

duly elected and qualified. Immediately after the first election 
hereunder, the members of said board so elected, shall draw lots 
for terms of two and four years, two of said terms to be for two 
years and three of said terms to be for four years, and thereafter 
all members of said board shall be elected for terms of four years, 
and until their successors shall have been duly elected and 
qualified. 

Section 3. That said board, at its first meeting, shall elect 
from among its members a president who shall discharge all of 
the functions incumbent upon presidents of parish school boards, 
and who may exercise similar powers, except as may be herein 
provided. He shall receive no compensation for his service. 
Said board may elect a superintendent of the city schools and 
fix his compensation. He shall have all of the qualifications 
required by law for parish superintendents except that he need 
not be a qualified elector, and such additional qualifications as 
the board may prescribe. Said board may also elect a secretary, 
and fix his compensation, which compensation shall not exceed 
ten dollars per month. The treasurer of the city of Lake Charles 
shall be ex-officio treasurer of said School Board. Said Board 
shall fix and approve his bond as such, and when premiums are 
required on said bond said Board shall pay them, provided they 
do not exceed the usual premium for official bonds of such nature. 
The president and the secretary of said Board shall be elected 
for terms of two years. 

Section 4. That said School Board shall possess and may 
exercise within the corporate limits of the city of Lake Charles, 
all of the powers conferred, and that may hereafter be conferred 
by law upon parish school boards, and shall within such territory 
discharge all of the duties incumbent upon such boards and shall 
be governed by all of the restrictions imposed upon the same. 

Section 5. That all moneys appropriated or budgeted by the 
city of Lake Charles out of the general revenues, and all special 
taxes levied by said city in aid of the public schools shall be paid 
over as collected by the tax collector of said city to the treasurer 
of said School Board, who shall issue to the tax collector, on 
receipting such payment, duplicate receipt. The tax collector 
shall make monthly statements to the City Council of all such 



87 



payments and shall attach to each monthly statement one of said 
duplicate receipts. 

Section 6. That the School Board of the Parish of Calcasieu 
shall pay to the School Board of the City of Lake Charles its 
pro rata of all funds intended for the support of the schools of 
the Parish of Calcasieu, including its pro rata of said funds 
apportioned to said parish, and its pro rata of fines and forfeited 
bonds; provided that under no circumstances shall this include 
any moneys budgeted by the Police Jury of the Parish of Cal- 
casieu in aid of the public schools of said parish out of the gen- 
eral revenues of said parish, nor any special taxes authorized 
by the taxpayers and levied in aid of the schools of said parish, 
unless such special taxes are levied in the territory contained in 
said city as part of the territory authorizing the levy of said 
special taxes. 

Section 7. That said School Board shall annually, before the 
election of teachers and employees, and not later than the first. 
Tuesday in July, submit to the Council of said city, for their 
guidance, an itemized statement of the expenses necessary to 
hire teachers and employees for the public schools of the city 
and to maintain said schools for the ensuing scholastic year, and 
also a statement of the funds said Board expects from other 
sources for said year. Upon approving this estimate as a basis 
for making appropriations out of the general revenues, the 
Council shall make such provision as it may deem proper in its 
budget for the ensuing fiscal year, within constitutional limita- . 
tions for the payment of the salaries of teachers and employees 
to be elected by said School Board, and for the maintenance of 
said schools. The said School Board shall create no debts nor 
obligations in excess of the amount appropriated or consented to 
be appropriated by the City Council, and in excess of the funds 
to be derived from other sources for said year as approved in 
said statement, without first having obtained the approval of the 
Council to such excess, nor until provision is made by the Council 
for its payment. 

Section 8. That no member of the City Council, nor any 
.officer of the city of Lake Charles shall be a member of said 
School Board. 



38 

Section 9. The said Board shall be required to report to the 
State Superintendent of Public Education, through its superin- 
tendent or president, the condition of the schools of the city of 
Lake Charles, in the same manner as provided by law for reports 
of parish superintendents, and for neglect or failure so to do, 
shall be liable to the same penalties. 

(Bird Day Established, S. 14, A. 198, '06.) 

Section 14, The State and Parish Boards of Public Educa- 
tion are directed to provide for the celebration, by all public 
schools, of "Bird Day," on May fifth of each year, being the 
anniversary of the birth of John James Audubon, the distin- 
guished son of Louisiana. 

On the recurring anniversary days, suitable exercises are to 
be engaged in, and lessons on the economic and esthetic value of 
the resident and migratory birds of the State are to be taught, 
by the teachers, to their pupils. 

(School Libraries Established, A. 202, '06.) 

Section 1. Whenever the patrons and friends of any individ- 
ual school or grade of the free public schools in which a library 
has not already been established by the aid of the parish board 
of school directors, shall raise by private subscription or other- 
wise and tender to the treasurer of the parish public school funds 
for the establishment of a library to be connected with such 
schools or grade, the sum of ten dollars, and the parish treasurer 
has so advised the secretary of the parish board of school direc- 
tors, the said board at its next quarterly meeting shall appro- 
priate from the public school funds the sum of ten dollars for 
this purpose, and shall appoint the teacher in charge of said 
school or grade the manager of such libraries ; provided further, 
that at times other than during the school term, the library shall 
be kept in a locked case provided for under this Act. 

(Duty of Parish Treasurer and Secretary of School Board.) 

Section 2. That as soon as the secretary of the parish board 
of school directors shall have received notice from the treasurer 
of the parish public school funds (and said notice should be 
served by the said treasurer within five days aft-er receipt of 
same) that a donation for a library for a certain school or grade 
has been made, the secretary shall inform the State Superintend- 



39 

ent of Public Education of the fact, whereupon the said Super- 
intendent shall furnish the said secretary a list of public school 
library books and prices therefor, said books and prices having 
been approved by the State Board of Education. 

(Manner of Selecting Books.) 

Section 3. That within five days after the parish board of 
school directors shall have made an appropriation for a library, 
the president and secretary of the board, with the assistance of 
the teacher in charge of the school or grade for which the appro- 
priation was made, shall select from the aforesaid approved list 
of books for public school libraries a list of books to be purchased 
for the said library, and shall submit a list of books to be pur- 
chased to the secretary of the board, who shall order the books at 
once, and payment for same shall be made by warrant upon the 
treasurer of the parish public school funds signed by the presi- 
dent and secretary of the parish board of school directors. 

(Duty of School Board to Furnish Book Case.) 

Section 4. Upon application of the parish superintendent, 
the parish board of school directors shall furnish, to each library, 
at the expense of the public school funds, a neat bookcase, with 
lock and key. 

(Local Manager to Observe Rules and Regulations; Report to State 
Superintendent.) 

The local manager of every library shall carry out such rules 
and regulations for the proper use and preservation of the books 
as may be established by the State Superintendent of Public 
Education, and shall on or before the tenth day of January of 
each year make to the State Superintendent of Public Education 
such report as he may require. 

(Duty of School Board When Second Appropriation is Made After One 
Year; Subsequent Appropriations Limited to One Per Year.) 

Section 5. When the patrons and friends of any individual 
school or grade of the public school in which a library has been 
established for one year under the preceding sections of this 
Act, shall raise by private subscription or otherwise and tender 
to the treasurer of the parish school funds the sum of five dollars 
for the enlargement of the library, the parish board of school 
directors shall appropriate from the money belonging to that 



40 

school or grade not less than the sum of five dollars nor more 
than fifteen dollars. The money thus collected and appropriated 
shall be used for the enlargement of libraries already established 
under the same rules and restrictions as govern the establishment 
of new libraries ; provided that no more than one such appropria- 
tion shall be made each year for each school or grade. 

(Legal Ownership to Remain in Parish School Board.) 

Section 6. The legal possession and ownership of the books, 
cases and other appendages of the school or grade library, snail 
be and remain in the parish board of school directors and their 
successors in office, and that the felonious destruction or taking 
and carrying away thereof, or any part thereof, or any books, 
.article, apparatus or furniture from or belonging to any public 
school house owned or used for public school purposes shall and 
is hereby declared to be larceny, and the breaking into such 
schoolhouse at night with intent to commit larceny, as herein set 
forth, or any felony, shall and is hereby declared to be burglary, 
and that any larceny or burglary so committed shall be punished 
;as in other cases under existing statutes. 

{Providing that the Doors of School Houses Shall Swing Outward, 
A. 91, '08.) 

Section 1. All doors for ingress and egress to public school- 
houses, churches, courthouses, assembly rooms, halls, theatres, 
factories with more than twenty employees and of all other 
buildings of public resort whatever, where people are wont to 
assemble, shall be so swung as to open outwardly from the audi- 
ence rooms, classrooms, halls, or workshops ; but such doors may 
be hung on double- jointed hinges, so as to open with equal ease 
outwardly or inwardly. 

Section 2. The provisions of this Act shall apply to all 
buildings and houses within its terms, erected after its passage, 
from the date it becomes in force. As to all such buildings and 
houses heretofore erected, said provisions shall be applied from 
and after the expiration of six months from the date when this 
Act becomes operative. 

Section 3. The president of the parish school board, the 
deacons, the stewards or managers of any church, the president 
of the parish police jury, or the owner of any hall, theatre, or 



41 



factory, failing to comply with the provisions of this Act or to 
have same complied with as relates to any building or buildings 
under the control of the bodies over which they preside or of 
which they are a member, or to such building or buildings owned 
by them, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction 
shall be fined not less than ten dollars nor more than one hundred 
dollars, and upon failure to pay such fine and costs shall be 
imprisoned in the parish jail for a period not exceeding ninety 
(90) days. 

Section 4. Provided that this Act shall not apply to facto- 
ries, cotton seed oil mills and other like establishments where the 
doers for the purpose of protection against fire, are so arranged 
as to slide back and forth on rollers. 

(Spitting on Schoolhouse Floor Prohibited, S. 1, A. 91, '08.) 

Any person who shall spit upon the floor or walls of any 
passenger car, street car, depot or waiting room, courthouse, 
churchhouse, schoolhouse, or any other public building whatever, 
shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction shall 
be fined in a sum not less than Five ($5) Dollars, nor more than 
Twenty-five ($25) Dollars, and in default of payment of fine 
and costs, shall be imprisoned in the parish jail for a period 
not exceeding ten days. 

(Pupils' Eyes to Be Tested, A. 292, '08.) 

Section, 1. The State Board of Health and Superintendent 
of Education shall prepare or cause to be prepared, suitable test 
cards, blanks and record books, and all other necessary appliances 
to be used in testing the sight and hearing of pupils in the public 
schools of the State, together with the necessary instructions for 
the use of same; and the Superintendent of Education shall 
furnish said test cards, record books, blanks and appliances 
together with the necessary instructions for the use to every 
public school in the State. 

Sec. 2. The Superintendent, Principal or Teacher in every 
school, during the month of September or during the first month 
of schools, or within thirty days after the admission of any pupils 
entering the school late in the session, shall in each year, test the 
sight and hearing of each and all pupils under his or her charge, 
and shall keep a record of such examination according to the 



42 



instructions furnished, and shall notify in writing the parent, 
tutor, tutrix, or guardian of every pupil who shall be found to 
have any defect of sight or hearing or any disease of eyes or 
ears of such defect ; and shall make a written report of all such 
examinations to the State Superintendent of Education. 

(Columbus Day, A. 56, 1910.) 

The several school boards of the State of Louisiana shall 
annually authorize, direct and instruct the parish superintendent 
of education, or other proper authority to observe the anniver- 
sary of the date of the discovery of America by Christopher 
Columbus, October 12, by such fitting and appropriate exercises, 
as the said various and several school boards may determine 
upon and select. 

Sec. 2. Any failure upon the part of the said several and 
various school boards and parish superintendents to comply with 
the provisions of this Act, shall subject said school boards and 
members thereof, and the parish superintendent to charges of 
nonfeasance, and neglect of duty, which may be preferred by 
any person, before the proper authority. 

ACT No. 116 OF 1910. 

Section 1. (Sections 1, 7, 8, 9, 15 and 16 as amended by Act 
263 of 1914) , In the Parish of Orleans there is hereby created a 
corporation to be known as the Board of Trustees of the Teachers ' 
Retirement Fund to be composed of nine persons who shall serve 
without compensation for their duties as members of said Board. 
The said Board of Trustees shall be a body corporate in law with 
power to sue and be sued, to have, hold, receive, use and sell or 
dispose of, under the provisions of this Act, property, real, per- 
sonal, and mixed, and to exercise all the rights, powers, and 
privileges of a corporation. The said Board shall also have 
power to borrow money, issue notes or other evidences of debt, 
and to pledge its revenue for the year then current from what- 
ever source received, for the purpose of promptly paying its 
obligations or for such other purposes as to said Board may seem 
right and proper. Legal process shall be served on the President, 
and, in his absence, or inability to act, on the Vice-President. 
The City Attorney shall act as the attorney for the Board of 
Trustees. The said Board of Trustees, shall be composed of the 



43 



Superintendent of Public Schools, three members of the Board of 
School Directors, to be elected by said Board of School Directors 
every four years in the month of January, beginning January, 
1913, and the members so elected shall become members of the 
said Board of Trustees on the -fifteenth day of February next 
following the date of their election, provided that as soon as 
practicable after the passage of this Act the Parish Board of 
School Directors shall elect three of its members to serve on the 
said Board of Trustees until the members elected in January, 
1913, shall become members of the said Board of Trustees ; and 
five members of the teaching force of the Parish of Orleans who 
shall be elected in the following manner : On the third Monday 
of January beginning in the year 1913, and every four years 
thereafter, the members of the teaching force of the Parish shall 
deposit with the said Board of Trustees a sealed ballot containing 
the names of five teachers representing their respective choices 
for membership on the said Board of Trustees. The Board of 
Trustees shall examine said ballots and give to each teacher 
receiving a vote credit therefor and the five teachers receiving 
the highest number of votes under the said ballots shall become 
members of the said Board of Trustees, on the fifteenth d&j of 
Februa:i;y next following the date of their election. The said 
Board of Trustees shall publicly announce the result of said 
election not later than the first day of February, next following 
the date said ballots were deposited, provided, however, that 
within 30 days after this Act shall become operative, and on a 
day to be designated by the Board of School Directors, five mem- 
bers of the teaching force of the Parish shall be elected in the 
manner provided, except the said ballots shall be deposited with 
the Board of School Directors, which Board shall examine said 
ballots and give to each teacher receiving a vote a credit therefor, 
and the five teachers receiving the highest number of votes under 
said ballots shall be members of the Board of Trustees until the 
members elected in 1913 shall become members of the said Board 
of Trustees. The Board of School Directors shall publicly an- 
nounce the result of said election, without any unnecessary delay 
after the election. As soon as practicable after the election of 
the members, the Superintendent shall call a meeting of the said 
Board of Trustees. Provided, that in order to carry out the 



44 

intention of this act, as amended, there shall be held, on the 
fourteenth day of October, 1914, a special election for two mem- 
bers of said Board of Trustees, to be chosen from the teaching 
force, said election to be conducted and the results ascertained 
and determined in the manner hereinabove provided, and the 
two teachers so chosen to hold office as members of said Board 
of Trustees until their successors shall have been elected and 
qualified in 1917, as provided in this amendment. 

Section 2. That the members of the said Board of Trustees 
shall hold office until their successors are elected and become 
members as provided in the preceding section. In case of a 
vacancy in said Board of Trustees by reason of death, resigna- 
tion, or through any other cause, of a member of the teaching 
force, the Board of Trustees shall elect a member of said teach- 
ing force as a member of said Board of Trustees for the un- 
expired term of the person who has ceased to be such; in case 
of a vacancy on said Board of Trustees by reason of death, resig- 
nation, or through any other cause, of a member of the Board 
of School Directors, the said Board of School Directors shall 
forthwith elect one of its members as a member of said Board 
of Trustees for the unexpired term of the person who has ceased 
to be such. 

Section 3. That a majority of said Board of Trustees shall 
constitute a quorum for the transaction of all business, and the 
said Board shall have full power to make and enforce all by-laws, 
rules and orders that it may deem necessary or appropriate to 
carry out the purposes of this Act, and said Board of Trustees 
may take by gift, grant, device or bequest, any money, personal 
property, real estate or any interest therein, and any such gift, 
grant, device or bequest may be absolute, or upon such conditions 
that the donor may impose at the time of the gift, grant, device, 
or bequest and said Board shall be authorized to take such gift, 
grant or bequest under and by the style of the Board of Trustees 
of the Teachers' Retirement Fund, and to hold the same or 
assign, transfer or sell same, whenever proper under the terms 
of such gift, grant, device or bequest, or whenever necessary, 
under and by such name. 

Section 4. That the said Board of Trustees shall elect from 
its members a President and a Vice-Pfesident. The Secretary 



45 

of the Board of School Directors shall be Secretary-Treasurer of 
the Board of Trustees, with such additional compensation there- 
for as may be fixed and paid by the Board of Trustees, and it 
shall be his duty to keep a true and correct statement of the 
account of each member with the Teachers' Ketirement Fund 
and to render to the Board of Trustees a monthly account of his 
doings. The Secretarj^-Treasurer of said Board of Trustees shall 
receive and keep account of all moneys belonging to the Teachers ' 
Retirement Fund and all notes, bonds and other securities be- 
longing to said Teachers' Retirement Fund, and shall collect the 
principal of, and interest on the same. The said Fund shall be 
deposited in a bank or banks to be selected by the Board of 
Trustees and to be withdrawn on checks signed by the Secretary- 
Treasurer and President of this Board ; the said notes, bonds and 
other securities shall be deposited in a safety deposit vault in a 
bank or banks, selected by the Board of Trustees, subject to the 
joint order of the President and Secretary-Treasurer of this 
Board. Before assuming to act as such Secretary-Treasurer he 
shall furnish bond in one or more bonding companies authorized 
to do business in this State, in such fixed amount as the Board of 
Trustees may require, conditioned for the faithful performance 
of the duties imposed upon him by this Act, or that may be 
assigned to him by the Board of Trustees, or form part of his 
duties in any manner, and for the faithful accounting of all 
moneys and securities, including both principal and interest, 
which may come into his hands and which shall belong to the 
Teachers' Retirement Fund, or be under the control of the Board. 
Said Secretary-Treasurer upon the expiration of his term of 
office shall account to said Board for all moneys, notes, bonds and 
other securities coming into his hands, and for the interest, in- 
come, profit, rentals and proceeds of and from the same and he 
shall turn over to his successor all moneys, notes, bonds and 
other securities belonging to said Fund. It shall be the duty of 
the Secretary-Treasurer to keep a true and accurate account of 
the proceedings of said Board of Trustees, and he shall perform 
such other duties as the Board of Trustees shall direct. The 
Secretary-Treasurer shall make a full and accurate account of 
his office whenever required so to do by the Board of Trustees. 
The said Board of Trustees shall have power to appoint such 



46 

other employees as it may from time to time deem necessary to 
carry out the purposes of this Act, and the said Board shall pay 
to such employees such salaries as may be fixed by the Board, 

Section 5. That every teacher who is such at the time of 
the passage of this Act, shall as soon as practicable thereafter 
notify the said Board of Trustees whether he or she desires to 
accept the advantages of this Act, or any amendments thereto, 
and every acceptance when given shall be irrevocable, and any 
such teacher who may accept shall be eligible for election to said 
Board of Trustees, and he or she shall have the right to vote for 
members thereof; and such teachers who shall fail to accept be- 
fore January 1, 1911, shall not be entitled to any benefits or 
advantages under this Act, until he or she shall have first paid 
into the Teachers' Retirement Fund, an amount equal to the 
assessments he or she would have paid into said fund, had such 
acceptance been given on or before December 31, 1910, together 
with twenty per centum of such amount. Assessments under 
this Act shall begin to be payable September 1st, 1910. 

Section 6. That from and after the passage of this Act, the 
acceptance of a position as teacher, or as a member of the teach- 
ing force of the Parish, shall ipso facto be an acceptance of all 
provisions of this Act, and of any amendments thereto, and as 
an agreement and obligation to pay assessments provided for 
herein, or that may be provided for. 

Section 7 of Act 116 of the General Assembly of the State of 
Louisiana for the year 1910, as amended by Act 263 of the 
General Assembly for the State of Louisiana for the year 1914, 
as further amended by Act 17 of the General Assembly for the 
State of Louisiana for the year 1918, reads as follows: 

Section 7. Be it further enacted, etc., That all moneys, 
property of any kind or securities that may come into the hands 
of said Board of Trustees, under the provisions of this Act, or 
any amendment thereto, shall be known as the Teachers' Retire- 
ment Fund and said Board of Trustees is hereby given full and 
complete power and exclusive control over said Fund, and is 
hereby empowered to have, demand, receive, hold, invest and 
reinvest the same for the promotion of the purpose of said fund 
which shall consist of the following : 

First : Assessments of not less than one percentum upon the 



47 

salary of every member of the teaching force, as defined in this 
Act, who has notified the Board of Trustees of his or her accept- 
ance of the provisions of this Act and amendments thereto, under 
Section 5, and upon the salary of each and every member of the 
teaching force as defined in this Act who has been appointed 
since the passage of this Act, or who may hereafter be appointed 
a member of the teaching force as defined in this Act. 

The Board of Trustees shall, from time to time, fix the rate of 
assessments on salaries of the teaching force, subject to and in 
accordance with the provisions of this Act. The Secretary of 
the Board of School Directors, paying such salaries, shall pre- 
pare monthly, as part of his monthly pay roll, a roll of assess- 
ments and place opposite the name of each and every teacher 
liable thereto, the amount of the monthly assessment payable by 
him or her, and shall furnish forthwith a copy of such roll to the 
Treasurer of the School Board, and the said Treasurer shall 
deduct and retain out of the monthly salary due to such teacher 
the amount of such monthly assessment, and the sum of such 
monthly assessments shall be immediately paid by the Treasurer 
to the said Board of Trustees. 

Second : Amounts to be appropriated each and every year by 
the Orleans Parish School Board, or its successor, equal to at 
least the aggregate of the assessments on the salaries of the 
members of the teaching force as defined in this Act, and the 
Orleans Parish School Board or its successor, is hereby required 
to make such an appropriation each year, and it is hereby made 
its duty to do so ; provided, such appropriation shall not be less 
than thirty thousand dollars each year. 

Third: All moneys, property of any kind, or securities that 
may come into the hands of the said Board of Trustees for the 
purpose of said Teachers' Retirement Fund by gift, grant, 
device, bequest or otherwise. 

Section 8. That the Board of School Directors may retire 
from regular duty, upon its motion, any teacher who has been 
such for a period of forty years at the time such application is 
made, and shall retire from regular duty any teacher, upon his 
or her application, who has been a regular teacher for a period 
of thirty years at the time such application is made, and the 
teacher so retired, provided he or she shall be entitled to the 



48 

advantages of this Act under Section 5 or 6 hereof, shall receive 
for life the salary provided by Section 15. Every teacher who 
is such at the time of passage of this Act, for the purpose of 
retirement under this Section or the next succeeding section, 
after service for ten years as a member of the teaching force of 
the Parish, shall- be entitled to full credit for his or her years 
of service as public school teacher elsewhere. 

Section 9. That the Board of School Directors shall retire 
from regular duty, upon his or her own application, any teacher 
who has been such for a period of five years, in the city schools, 
at the time such application is made, and who is disabled and 
incapacitated from performing regular duty, provided the Board 
of Trustees shall find such teacher so disabled or incapacitated 
after an examination made by the Medical Inspector appointed 
by the Board of School Directors, or after such examination as 
the Board of Trustees may provide. No examination fee or 
charge shall be paid by the teacher examined. The Board of 
School Directors may retire upon its motion, and shall retire 
upon his or her own application any teacher who has reached 
the age of sixty-five years. Any teacher so retired under the 
provisions of this Section, provided he or she shall be entitled to 
the advantages of this Act, under Sections 5 or 6 hereof, shall 
receive for life a salary of as many fortieths of that provided for 
by Section 15, as he or she may have served years at the time of 
such retirement ; and if the Board of School Directors shall deem 
any teacher who has been such for a period of five years at the 
time the notices herein provided for are given, to be disabled or 
incapacitated from performing regular duty, the said Board of 
School Directors shall serve written notice to that effect upon the 
said teacher and upon the President or Secretary-Treasurer of 
the Board of Trustees, and the proceedings shall then be had, 
after the notice provided for in Section 11, in accordance with 
the provisions of said Section 11. If the Board of Trustees, after 
such proceedings are had shall find the said teacher to be in- 
capacitated from performing regular duty, such teacher, if so 
retired, shall be entitled to a salary in the manner and amount 
as if he or she had been retired upon his or her own application 
under this Section. 

Section 10. That unless teachers who may be retired under 



49 

the preceding Sections shall have paid into said Teachers' Re- 
tirement Fund, by way of assessment or otherwise, an amount 
equal at least to that which he or she shall be entitled to receive 
as a salary for the first year of retirement, the said Board of 
Trustees shall deduct one-fifth of the deficiency thereof from the 
amount of said salary for each of the first five years that the 
same may be payable. 

Section 11. That after any teacher shall have been retired 
under Section 9, the Board of Trustees shall have the right at 
any time to cause such teacher to again be brought before it and 
examined by the Medical Inspector of the Board of School Di- 
rectors, and also to examine other witnesses for the purpose of 
ascertaining whether such teacher shall remain on the retired 
roll. The fee or charge of the examining physician shall be paid 
by the Board of Trustees, Such teacher shall be entitled to at 
least thirty days' notice and to be present at the hearing of any 
evidence ; shall be permitted to propound any questions perti- 
nent or relative to such matter, and shall have the right to intro- 
duce evidence upon his or her own behalf. Such teacher and all 
witnesses shall be examined under oath, and any male member 
of said Board of Trustees is hereby authorized and empowered to 
administer the oath. If the Board of Trustees shall find such 
teacher qualified for active service, he or she shall report to the 
Superintendent of Public Schools of the Parish, whenever re- 
quired to do so by the Board of Trustees, and said Superintend- 
ent shall assign such teacher to such service or employment as 
may be within his or her power to perform, in the judgment of 
such Superintendent and of the examining physician employed 
by the Board of School Directors. During the time of such 
employment such teacher shall receive the regular salary there- 
for, and shall cease to be entitled to any payment out of the 
Teachers' Retirement Fund, because of disability or incapacity 
on account of which such teacher was retired. Any teacher that 
may be retired under Section 9, and reassigned for active duty 
under this Section, shall for the purposes of late retirement un- 
der this Act, be considered as having been in active service during 
the period of former retirement. 

Section 12. That any teacher retired under the provisions of 
this Act shall continue as an employee of the Board of Directors 



50 

of Public Schools, but shall be compensated from the .Teachers ' 
Retirement Fund as provided for in this Act, and it shall be the 
duty of the teacher so retired to render, without extra compen- 
sation, such teaching service and at such time as the Board of 
Directors of Public Schools shall direct, provided, the Board of 
School Directors shall not require any such retired teacher to 
perform any teaching service except such as the Board of Trus- 
tees may certify to the Board of School Directors to be within 
the reasonable physical power of such retired teacher, and pro- 
vided further that no such retired teacher shall be required to 
render teaching service for a longer period than thirty days in 
any school year. 

Section 13. That the Board of Trustees shall establish a 
permanent fund, to the credit of which shall be put and de- 
posited all gifts, grants, devices and bequests, all other receipts 
for the first fiscal year during which the Act shall become opera- 
tive, except so much of said receipts as the Board of Trustees 
may require during the said year to defray its expenses and the 
unexpended balances remaining at the end of each fiscal year 
thereafter. And no part of the said permanent fund shall be 
expended, except the interest and income therefrom; provided, 
however, that one-half of the amount added to such permanent 
fund during any fiscal year may be used, if necessary, during 
the fiscal year immediately following, and provided further that 
amounts to be refunded under Section 16, shall be paid out of 
the permanent fund. The fiscal year shall begin September 1st, 
of each year. 

Section 14. That this Act shall not affect in smy way the 
power of the Board of School Directors to remove teachers from 
service under the laM^s now in force, or hereafter enacted. 

Section 15. That upon th"^ retirement of any teacher under 
Section 8, the teacher so retired shall be entitled to receive a 
salary for life out of the Teachers' Retirement Fund equal to 
one-half of his or her average annual salary for five years im- 
mediately preceding retirement, but no salary of any teacher 
shall be less than $300.00 nor greater than $600.00 per annum, 
and the Board of Trustees, subject to such rule or regulations 
as the Board may adopt, shall pay, the salaries to the teachers 
entitled thereto under this Section and Sections 8 and 9. 



51 

Section 16. That any teacher contributing to such Retire- 
ment Fund, who shall voluntarily cease to teach in the Public 
Schools of the Parish, before receiving any salary from said 
Teachers' Retirement Fund, shall be entitled to the return of 
one-half of the amount, without interest, which shall have been 
paid into said Teachers' Retirement Fund by such teacher, and 
any teacher whose services shall be dispensed with by the Board 
of School Directors for any reasons other than those enumerated 
in the preceding Sections, shall be entitled to the return of the 
full amount, without interest, paid into the Retirement Fund by 
said teacher; provided, however, should such teacher hereafter 
again teach in the Public Schools of the Parish, such teacher 
shall repay to said Teachers ' Retirement Fund the amount so 
returned to said teacher, within one year from the date of his or 
her return to service in the schools, and upon such repayment 
being made in addition to such assessments as she would have 
paid in the interim, plus 10% interest, he or she shall be entitled 
to credit for the length of time of the former service and interim. 
Should any teacher die before receiving any salary under this 
Act, the Board of Trustees shall pay to teacher's estate, one-half 
the amount, without interest, which shall have been paid into 
said Teachers' Retirement Fund by said teacher. 

Section 17. That no retired salary, whatsoever, provided for 
in this Act, shall be payable or paid during the first fiscal year 
during which said Act shall become operative ; provided, further, 
should any contributors to said Teachers ' Retirement Fund make 
application for retirement under the provisions of this Act 
during said year his or her name shall be placed on a waiting list 
and he or she shall be retired at the discretion of the Board of 
Trustees when said year shall have expired, but no teacher shall 
be retired by the Board of School Directors under this Act, 
until after the expiration of said year. 

Section 18. That the said Teachers' Retirement Fund and 
all salaries and refunds granted and payable by the Board of 
Trustees shall be, and are exempt from seizure or levy under 
attachment, execution, garnishment process or any other process ; 
and said salaries and refunds or paj^ment of the same shall not 
be subject to sale, assignment or transfer by any beneficiary. 



52 



and any such sale, assignment or transfer of the same shall be 
absolutely void. 

Section 19. That the terms "teacher" and "members of 
teaching force of the parish" as used in this Act, shall mean and 
include any superintendent, assistant superintendent, principal, 
vice principal, supervisor, secretary, inspector, person in charge 
of any special department of instruction, cadet, librarian, and 
any assistant to any of those above named, member of office 
force, and any teacher or instructor regularly employed as such 
by the Board of School Directors of the Parish; provided, that 
at the first election under the provisions of this Act each and 
every teacher or member of the teaching force of the parish, in- 
cluding the officers named in this Section, shall have the right to 
vote for three members of the teaching force of the parish to be 
chosen at such election, whether such teacher, member of the 
teaching force or officer has signified his intention to accept the 
provisions of this Act or not. 

Section 20. That the said Board of Trustees shall have ex- 
clusive control and its decisions shall be final upon the question 
of placing any teacher upon the retired list, and the granting a 
salary to said teacher so retired ; the said Board of Trustees shall 
hear and decide all applications in reference to the retirement of 
teachers, whether made by the teacher or suggested by the Board 
of School Directors, and the decision of said Board of Trustees 
in all these matters shall be final and conclusive and not subject 
to review or reversal except by the Board of Trustees; and 
nothing in this Act shall be construed as depriving the Board of 
Trustees of the discretionary powers of retiring a teacher, nor 
shall anything in this Act be construed as making it mandatory 
on the Board of Trustees to retire a teacher on his or her appli- 
cation. 

Section 21. That this Act shall take effect from the date of 
its passage and all laws or parts of laws in conflict herewith are 
hereby repealed. 

(Forfeited Bonds, S. 1044, R. S.) 

The several district attorneys throughout the State shall be 
entitled to demand and receive one-fifth of all sums, first de- 
ducting the percentage allowed by law -to the sheriff for collecting 



53 

and paying over the same, which may be collected on forfeited 
bonds in criminal prosecutions and misdemeanors in any court 
of justice. 

(Quarterly Statements to Be Furnished Supervisor of Public Accounts 
by Parish Superintendent and State Superintendent, S. 5, A. 25, 

'10.) 

All State boards and commissions and other public offices 
created by law, and all educational and eleemosynary institutions 
of this State including parish school boards, road and drainage 
districts, shall furnish to said Supervisor of Public Accounts, 
quarterly, in each year, sworn statements of all moneys received 
by them, from what sources, and all moneys expended by them 
and for what purposes ; said statements shall be accompanied by 
vouchers and other papers necessary to prove the correctness of 
the same and no officer shall destroy any voucher or other paper 
belonging to his office before same has been examined and passed 
upon by said Supervisor of Public Accounts. 

It shall be the duty of the Supervisor of Public Accounts to 
check said statements, and, if any irregularities exist to call the 
attention of those responsible thereto. In case of any irregulari- 
ties or defalcations or failure of any officer or employee to comply 
with the provisions of this Act, it shall be the duty of the Super- 
visor of Public Accounts to immediately notify the Governor of 
the State.' The quarterly sworn statements provided in this 
Section shall be furnished the Supervisor of Public Accounts 
between the first and fifteenth of January, April, July and 
October of each year; the Supervisor of Public Accounts shall 
install a system of accounting in every office, which by law it is 
made his duty to inspect and report upon. The Supervisor of 
Public Accounts shall return all vouchers to the respective offices 
after inspection. 

(Form of Accounts Prescribed; Records to Be Kept in Office, S. 6. 
A. 25, '10.) 

All public offices, boards, commissions and eleemosynary and 
educational institutions of this State and all parochial school 
boards, road and drainage districts, shall provide an office for 
their secretary and treasurer where their books and records must 
be kept. All accounts shall be kept in the form prescribed by 
the Supervisor of Public Accounts; that any failure of any 



54 

officer or employee to furnish the Supervisor of Public Accounts 
with any information requested shall immediately report to the 
Governor of the State, who will take such action as he may deem 
proper. The Supervisor of Public Accounts is authorized to 
administer oaths and the Assistant Supervisor of Public Ac- 
counts when acting under instructions of the Supervisor of Pub- 
lic Accounts shall have the same power and authority as is 
granted under this Act to the Supervisor of Public Accounts, 
except in the matter of administering oaths. 

(Reports Filed by Supervisor; Duty of School Board Treasurer, S. 7, 
A. 25, '10.) 
The Supervisor of Public Accounts shall make all reports of 
his examination in duplicate, one to be filed with the Grovernor 
and one in the office investigated, unless otherwise provided in 
this Act ; if the report of any examination discloses any violation 
by any public officer or employee, the Supervisor of Public 
Accounts shall furnish an additional copy to the district attorney 
of the parish where said offense was committed. That the Auditor 
of Public Accounts shall furnish the Supervisor of Public Ac- 
counts, in writing, whenever a tax collector is delinquent, and 
every parish treasurer and every parish school board treasurer 
shall notify the Supervisor of Public Accounts whenever any 
sheriff is delinquent in his settlement. 

(Penalty for Neglect of Duty, S. 10, A. 25, '10.) 

Section 10. That any public officer or employee in. an office 
that is subject to examination by the Supervisor of Public Ac- 
counts who wilfully neglects or fails to furnish said Supervisor 
of Public Accounts with such papers, accounts, books, or other 
documents which he has the right to inspect or audit under the 
terms of the Act, or who shall wilfully refuse or neglect to trans- 
mit to said Supervisor of Public Accounts such reports, state- 
ments or accounts, or other documents, upon request as provided 
by the terms of this Act, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor 
in office and shall, upon conviction, suffer a fine of not less than 
twenty-five dollars, nor more than five hundred dollars, or be 
imprisoned not less than ten days nor more than six months, or 
both such fine and imprisonment in the discretion of the court 
having jurisdiction. 



55 

(Fees of Tax Collectors, S. 1, 2, A, 181, '08.) 

That for all services, labors and duties performed by each 
Sheriff and ex-officio Tax Collector throughout the State of 
Louisiana as Tax Collector, Parish of Orleans excepted, he shall 
be paid five per centum on the first seventy-five thousand dollars, 
aggregate amount of all State, Parish, District, Poll, and other 
taxes and licenses, collected by him and actually paid by him 
into the State and Parish Treasury or to the authority designated 
by law to receive the same; and two per centum on the next 
forty -five thousand dollars, and one per cent on all amounts over 
one hundred and twenty thousand dollars, provided that no 
Sheriff and ex-officio Tax Collector shall receive for the collection 
of all taxes more than eight thousand dollars per annum, pro- 
vided further that no Sheriff and ex-officio Tax Collector shall 
receive any compensation for the collection of special school 
taxes except in parishes where the total amount of State, Parish, 
Levee and Poll Taxes and licenses collected do not amount to 
$50,000. Be it further provided that in parishes where the col- 
lection of State, Parish, Levee and Poll taxes and licenses do not 
amount to $50,000 the Sheriff and ex-officio Tax Collector shall 
receive five per cent, on amount collected and actually paid into 
the State and Parish Treasury or to the authority designated to 
receive the same. 

The payment of the compensation herein provided for the 
Sheriff and ex-officio Tax Collector for the collection of Taxes 
and Licenses shall be distributed between the State, Parish, 
School Board and other taxing districts or divisions and licenses 
in proportion to the amount of taxes and licenses received by 
each. 

ACT No. 11 OF 1912. 

Be it resolved by the House of Representatives, the Senate 
concurring. That the Registrar of the Land Office and the At- 
torney General be, and they are hereby, directed to look into the 
matter of sixteenth section lands and school indemnity lands set 
aside for the benefit of the public schools of the State of Louis- 
iana, and to prepare a statement which will show all sixteenth 
sections and indemnity lands that were originally set aside for 
the benefit of the public schools in the various parishes, what 



56 

lands have been sold, and what was done with the funds realized 
from the sale of such lands, and what sixteenth sections and 
school indemnity lands are still owned by the various parishes 
for the benefit of the public schools, and where located. Where 
funds realized from the sale of sixteenth sections and school 
indemnity lands have not been properly credited on the State 
Auditor's books for the benefit of the parishes entitled to them, 
the Attorney General shall take the necessary action to require 
the State Auditor to make the proper corrections. 

ACT No. 39 OF 1912. 

Section 1. The official fiag of Louisiana shall be that flag 
now in general use, consisting of a solid blue field with the Coat- 
of-Arms of the State, the pelican feeding its young, in white in 
the center, with a ribbon beneath, also in white, containing in 
blue the motto of the State, "Union, Justice and Confidence," 
the whole showing as below. 

Section 2. The said State flag shall be displayed on the State 
House whenever the General Assembly is in session and on public 
buildings throughout the State on all legal holidays and when- 
ever otherwise directed by the Governor or the General Assembly. 

ACT No. 69 OF 1912. 
Section 1. The police juries of the several parishes of the 
State, under such regulations as they may prescribe be and are 
hereby authorized to appropriate and use from parish funds 
any sum or sums of money not exceeding altogether one thousand 
dollars per year in aid of the Farmers' Cooperative Demonstra- 
tion Work in their respective parishes jointly with the agents 
and representatives of the United States Department of Agricul- 
ture, upon such terms and conditions as may be agreed upon be- 
tween the several police juries and said agents and representa- 
tives. 

ACT No. 118 OF 1912. 

Section 1. (As amended and re-enacted by Act 207 of 1914.) 
That the Board of Trustees of the Southern University are here- 
by directed to sell all of its present property, real and personal 
save and except such personal property as will be useful or 
necessary for the purposes of the Southern University, situated 



57 

in the Parishes of Jefferson and Orleans, State of Louisiana, 
upon such terms and conditions as said Board of Trustees may 
determine ; provided, that the sale contemplated by this section 
shall be first submitted to the Governor of the State for his 
approval, in writing, which written approval shall be attached 
to the Act or Acts of Sale as authority to the notary to pass the 
deed. The proceeds of said sale shall be invested in the manner 
and in such property as hereinafter provided. 

Section 2. The said Board of Trustees, within a reasonable 
time after the passage of this Act, shall acquire a suitable site 
for said Southern University, in the rural section of the State, 
and upon said site erect appropriate buildings, containing such 
equipment as, in the judgment of the said Board of Trustees, 
is necessary and proper for carrying on of the said Southern 
University, under the terms of this Act, and under the terms of 
Act No. 87 of 1880, that said Board of Trustees shall, prior to 
executing the deed of sale for the property herein contemplated 
to be purchased, submit the terms and conditions of said pur-' 
chase and the location of said property, to the Governor of the 
State, for his approval, and his written approval of the location 
and the terms and conditions of the purchase, shall be the au- 
thority to the said Board of Trustees, to execute the deed of 
purchase. The sessions shall continue in said university and on 
said farm until the new site of the university is provided for 
under the provisions of this act. 

Section 3. In addition to carrying out the University pur- 
poses set forth in Section 7 of Act No. 87, of 1880, said Board of 
Trustees shall have power and it shall be their, duty to establish 
si department of said Southern University, which shall be known 
as "The Industrial and Agricultural Normal School;" that said 
"Industrial and Agricultural Normal School" shall be equipped 
in such manner and provided with such teachers, so as to in- 
struct persons of color, male and female, to be teachers, so they 
can teach industrial and agricultural subjects in schools 'for 
youths of both sexes of the colored race. 

Section 4. It shall be the duty of the Board of Trustees of 
the Southern University, as soon as practicable after the estab- 
lishment of the University upon the new site contemplated in 
this Act, to establish a department of the University, which shall 



N 58 

be known as ''The Model Industrial and Agricultural School," 
and at least eight grades shall be created in said school, in which 
to assign pupils, and said grades and the course of teaching to 
be taught therein, shall be set forth in proper regulations to be 
formulated by the said Board of Trustees, provided that all 
teachers in the said ' ' Model Industrial and Agricultural School ' ' 
shall be persons of the colored race. 

Section 5. The said Board of Trustees shall be empowered 
to enact general rules and by-laws for the said University in all 
its departments, whether said departments appertain to indus- 
trial and agricultural subjects or to the arts and letters, and to 
elect a President of the Faculty, the professors and teachers and 
determine their compensation; also all officers and employees 
that may be necessary, and prescribe their duties and compensa- 
tion ; providing that the President of the Faculty, the professors, 
teachers and all other employees except only the Board of Trus- 
tees, themselves, shall be persons of the colored race. All mem- 
bers of the Board of Trustees shall be of the white race, and the 
Board shall consist of one member from each of the Congres- 
sional Districts, appointed for a term of four years, by the 
Governor of the State, and the State Superintendent of Public 
Education and the Governor, the Governor to be Chairman of 
the Board. (Southern University is now located on a farm of 
500 acres at Scotland, four miles north of Baton Kouge.) 

ACT No. 123 OF 1912. 

Section 1. That the Register of the State Land Office be and 
is hereby authorized, when it is made to appear from the records 
of his office and such other evidence as he may require, .that a 
township has not received from the State the school indemnity 
lands, to which it is entitled, to issue a warrant in the name of 
the President of the School Board of the Parish in which the 
said township is located for the number of acres due the said 
township. 

Section 2. The warrants issued under Section One of the 
provisions of this act shall be assignable by the School Board for 
not less than $5.00 per acre, and that the said warrants shall be 
locatable upon any vacant State lands subject to entry. 

Section 3. On the location of the warrants authorized by 



59 

this Act a patent shall issue, as required by existing law, in the 
name of the locator for the amount of land specified in such 
warrant. 

ACT No. 145 OF 1912. 

Section 1. The police juries of the several parishes of this 
State are empowered to acquire the ownership of a tract of land 
and when so acquired the title to the same shall rest in the 
public; provided, however, in those parishes having large areas 
of different classes of soil are empowered under this act to ac- 
quire tracts as aforesaid representative of the several classes of 
soil that predominate in the particular parish. 

Section 2. The tracts of land so acquired are to be consti- 
tuted Parish Experimental Farms and the parish is to improve 
said property so that it may be worked by the parish in accord- 
ance with plans to be suggested by the State and United States 
Agricultural Departments, provided that the police juries of the 
said parishes may utilize in the working of the same its parish 
prisoners. 

Section 3. The Parish Experimental Farms provided for by 
this act are established for the purpose of demonstrating the 
possibilities of the soil in the respective parishes, and in every 
way to disseminate a scientific knowledge of agriculture, and in 
consequence the work and results so obtained on the Parish Ex- 
perimental Farms are to be open to the inspection and study of 
the public at stated times. 

Section 4. With a view of stimulating a friendly rivalry 
as to the most successful results obtained upon the said Parish 
Experimental Farms, it is further provided that a selection of 
the best results of each year's work upon said Parish Experi- 
mental Farms may be assembled and exhibited annually at the 
State Fair in the building owned and set apart by the State as 
an Agricultural Hall at the State Fair of Louisiana. 

Section 5. The Police Juries are empowered to make pro- 
vision in their budgets for the carrying out of this act at the 
earliest practicable time that the finances of each parish will 
permit. 

ACT No. 151 OF 1912. 
Section 1. Act No. 168 of the Acts of the General Assembly 



60 

of the State of Louisiana for the year 1894, be amended and re- 
enacted so as to read as follows : 

That whenever a sixteenth section donated to the State of 
Louisiana by an act of Congress for school purposes is located 
in a township not habitable by reason of said township being 
swamp or sea marsh, the Board of School Directors may, upon 
the petition of the land owners owning in area more than one- 
half of the land in the township, order the sale of such six- 
teenth section by resolution or motion passed by a majority of 
the members of such board present and voting. 

Section 2. "When a sale of a sixteenth section is ordered as 
authorized in the first section of this act, the same shall be made 
by the Parish Treasurer of the Parish in which the sixteenth 
section is located, in person or by the sheriff or any auctioneer of 
the parish, designated by him. Said sale, however, shall be made 
only after the same has been advertised for thirty days in a 
newspaper published in the parish where the property is located ; 
and where no newspaper is published in the parish, then, by 
posting a written or printed notice for thirty days at or near 
the front door of the courthouse in the parish where the property 
is situated and at two other public places in such parish. On the 
day named in the advertisement, the said section shall be sold as 
a whole or in lots of not less than forty acres, at the principal 
front door of the courthouse of the parish in which the property 
is situated, between the hours of Eleven 'Clock A. M. and Four 
'Clock P. M., with appraisement, to the last and highest bidder 
and without a prior survey of the property and upon the follow- 
ing terms and conditions: One-tenth (1-10) or more in cash at 
the option of the purchaser, and the remainder, if any, in nine 
(9) equal annual installments, bearing eight (8 per cent) per 
cent interest per annum from date interest payable annually and 
the deeds shall contain the usual security clauses and a stipula- 
tion to pay ten (10) per cent attorney's fees in the event the 
services of an attorney are secured for the purpose of collecting 
same. 

Section 3. That the deed of the Parish Treasurer shall be 
full and complete evidence of the sale and shall convey a good 
and valid title to the property sold and have all the force and 
effect of a notarial act ; and all moneys or notes received under 



61 

and by virtue of such sale shall be disposed of by him in the 
manner now required by law. 

ACT No. 205 OF 1912. 

Section 1. That after the expiration of existing contracts, all 
funds of the State of Louisiana and of all parishes and munici- 
palities thereof and of all public boards, commissions and bodies 
created by or under the authority of the State or of any parish 
or municipality thereof, shall be deposited daily, whenever prac- 
ticable, in the fiscal agency or agencies hereinafter provided for, 
upon the terms and conditions and in the manner hereinafter 
set forth. Such deposits shall be made in the name of the State 
or of the parish, municipality, board, commission or body au- 
thorized by law to have the custody of and control over the 
disbursements of the same. 

Section 2. That the fiscal agency or agencies with whom 
such funds shall be deposited shall be such bank or banks organ- 
ized under the laws of the State of Louisiana or of the United 
States and domiciled in this State, as may be selected by the 
Board of Liquidation or by the proper authority of the parish, 
municipality, commission or other body created by or under 
authority of the State or of any parish or municipality thereof, 
as the case may be; such bank or banks so selected to give 
security for the safekeeping and payment of such deposits and 
to pay interest and perform other services for the State of 
Louisiana as and in the manner hereinafter provided. 

Section 3. (1) That all funds belonging to or received in be- 
half of the State of Louisiana by the State Treasurer shall be 
deposited by the Board of Liquidation of the State Debt one- 
half thereof in one or more banks in the City of New Orleans, 
and the remainder in one or more banks in each of the Congres- 
sional Districts in the State exclusive of the first and second 
districts, provided, that there shall be as near as practicable an 
equal amount deposited in each district, which banks shall be 
the fiscal agents of the State of Louisiana and are hereinafter 
referred to as such. 

(2) That all funds belonging to the State received by and in 
the hands of sheriffs and tax collectors, pending their transmis- 
sion to the State Treasurer, shall be deposited by the receiving 



62 

officer daily, whenever practicable, with the bank or banks domi- 
ciled in the parish where said funds are collected, which shall 
have been selected in the manner hereinafter provided, as the 
fiscal agency or agencies, either of the State or of the particular 
parish. When such funds have been collected in parishes in 
which no banks are domiciled, the same shall be deposited, in 
accordance with the provisions of this act, in a bank which shall 
have been selected as the fiscal agent of the State, located in the 
parish nearest to the one in which said funds have been collected. 
When such funds thus deposited are transferred by the sheriff 
and tax collectors to the State Treasurer, the bank or banks in 
which the same shall have been deposited shall make the transfer 
in currency or in New Orleans exchange without charge. 

(3) That all funds belonging to or received by any parish, 
municipality, school board, drainage or sub-drainage district, 
public board, commission or body created by special or general 
act of the General Assembly of the State of Louisiana, not re- 
quired under existing laws to be held in the custody or posses- 
sion of the State Treasurer, shall be deposited by the police jury, 
municipal council, commissioners, or other proper authority, as 
the case may be, in such bank or banks in the State of Louisiana 
as shall have been selected, in the manner hereinafter provided, 
as the fiscal agency of the depositing authority, preferably in 
one or more banks located within the parish or municipality from 
which said funds have been collected, — subject, however, to the 
exception contained in Section No. 8 of this Act. 

(4) That all funds belonging to or received by any board, 
commission or body created or controlled by any parochial or 
municipal government shall be deposited in the bank or banks 
previously selected as the depository of such parish and munici- 
pality ; and any interest earned thereon shall belong to the parish 
and municipality creating the said board, commission or body. 

Section 4. That the conditions under which the funds of the 
State of Louisiana and all parishes and municipalities thereof 
and all public boards, commissioners and bodies created by or 
under the authority of the State or of any parish or municipality 
thereof, shall be deposited, are as follows : 

(1) That all public moneys in charge of such authorities shall 
be let by the depositing authority to the bidder or bidders in 



63 



the City of New Orleans and in the respective congressional 
districts as provided in paragraph 1 of Section 3 of this act, 
offering the liighest rate of interest for all or any part of the 
funds of such authority consistent with the safekeeping and 
prompt return thereof, and no bid shall be accepted providing for 
a lower rate of interest, on such deposits, than 3% per annum. 

(2) No amount in excess of the capital stock and surplus of 
such bank shall be deposited in any one bank by one authority. 

(3) No bank shall be eligible to receive the deposits of any 
public funds which shall not have accompanied its bid for such 
deposit with a sworn statement of its condition, as shown by its 
books on the first day of the month previous to its filing its bids 
for such deposits. 

(4) All banks selected as fiscal agencies or depositories for 
the deposit of funds belonging to the State of Louisiana shall be 
required to lend to the State of Louisiana such sums as the State 
shall have been authorized to borrow, up to the amount of the 
deposit then held by such bank at the same rate of interest as 
the deposit bears; and shall be further required to carry the 
coupons of the funded debt of the State of Louisiana, and to 
cash without charge and to receive on deposit at par all checks 
drawn by or in favor of the State of Louisiana upon whatsoever 
point the same may be drawn and shall be further required to 
lend their aid to the Board of Liquidation in refunding the 
bonded indebtedness of the State without extra charge, all as a 
part of the consideration for receiving the State's deposits. 

(5) All parishes and municipalities of the State of Louisiana 
and all public boards, commissions and bodies created by or 
under authority of the State, or of any parish or municipality 
thereof, shall require of the bank or banks selected as its or their 
depositories, in addition to the payment of interest, to lend to 
such board or authority, when the same have been legally au- 
thorized to -borrow, an amount equal to the average deposits 
which it may have kept in such bank, at the same rate of interest 
as its deposit bears ; and shall further cash Avithout charge and 
receive on deposit at par, all checks drawn by or in favor of the 
depositing authority on whatsoever point the same may be drawn. 

Section 5. 

(1) That the Board of Liquidation of the State of Louisiana 



64 

and all parishes and municipalities thereof, and all public 
boards, commissions and bodies created by or under authority 
of the State or of any parish or municipality thereof, shall 
require as security for deposits made by them, the bonds of the 
United States of America, or of any colonial possession thereof, 
or unmatured bonds of the State of Louisiana or of any legally 
organized subdivision or board thereof, which shall not have been 
in default of interest for a period of six months ; the valuation at 
which such bonds shall be accepted as security to be subject to 
the discretion of the State Treasurer, or the authority letting 
such deposits. The bonds so furnished as security shall be de- 
posited with the State Treasurer or with the treasurer of the 
authority letting such deposits, who shall receipt therefor to the 
depositing bank. The amount of said security shall be equal 
to the average amount of the deposits of the State of Louisiana 
or the other depositing authority as the case may be, as shown by 
the books of the State or of such other authority for the previous 
year. If the said fund shall arise from some subdivisions, board 
or commission which has not previously had any funds to deposit, 
the amount of security to be furnished for the first year shall 
be equivalent to 60% of the amount of the deposits and shall 
thereafter be equal to the average amount of such deposit as 
shown by the books of such subdivision, board or commission as 
hereinabove provided. 

(2) The fiscal agencies and depository bank may, at their 
option in lieu of depositing bonds as provided in the preceding 
paragraph, furnish the indemnity bond of a duly authorized 
surety company conditioned for the safekeeping and return of 
such deposits and the payment of the interest thereon, in a sum 
equal to the average amount of deposits determined as herein- 
before provided, provided that no surety company shall be 
accepted as surety on any bond for any one bank for a greater 
sum than 10 p. c. of the capital and surplus of such surety com- 
pany; and provided further that such bank or banks as afore- 
said for part of the security required of them and give indemnity 
bond for the balance in such proportion as it or they may see fit. 

Section 6. That the Board of Liquidation of the State of 
Louisiana, and the proper authority of all parishes, municipali- 
ties, boards and commissions thereof, shall, thirty days before the 



65 

expiration of existing contracts entered into according to the 
present law, being Act 316 of the General Assembly of 1910, and 
biennially thereafter, cause to be printed a circular letter, setting 
forth the intention of the Board of Liquidation or of the proper 
authority in the particular case, to select, at a specified time 
stated therein, its fiscal agencies and depository bank or banks. 
One copy of such circular shall be mailed to each of the banks 
domiciled in this State and shall be published in one or more 
newspapers located in the City of New Orleans and in the parish 
or municipality in which the depositing authority is domiciled, 
and a copy shall be deposited with the Governor, together with a 
list of the banks to which the circular has been sent. Such 
circular shall invite bids for deposits subject to the terms of 
this act. 

Section 7. That it shall be the duty of the Board of Liqui- 
dation and of all authorities having the letting of the public 
funds to use all reasonable and proper means to secure to the 
State the best terms and the highest rate of interest consistent 
with the safekeeping and prompt repayment of the funds when 
demanded, and to let such funds to the highest bidder therefor 
consistent with the safety of such funds. 

Section 8. That the Board of Liquidation of the State of 
Louisiana and any of the Boards or Commissions thereof and 
any Parish, School or Road District and any other authority 
having the right to deposit public funds which may have bonds 
for sale may, in order to effect a prompt and satisfactory sale of 
such bonds, deposit the proceeds of such bonds until used and 
the proceeds of the tax voted to pay the interest and principal of 
such bonds, and such amounts as may be reserved for the sink- 
ing fund required by such bonds, in any bank or banks located 
in the State of Louisiana which may purchase the said bonds, 
upon such terms and conditions including security as may be 
mutually agreed upon as a condition of, and part of the con- 
sideration for the purchase of such bonds; provided the distri- 
bution of the balance of the State 's funds as provided in Section 
3 paragraph 1 of this Act shall not be changed. 

Section 9. That all funds deposited in the registry of any 
court or coming into the hands of the Clerk of Court or sheriff 
in any judicial proceedings and not belonging to such officer, 



66 



shall be deposited in the bank or banks previously selected by 
the Police Jury of the Parish as the fiscal agent of the Parish 
and at the same rate of interest paid to the Parish, subject how- 
ever to any rule or order of the Court, except in the Parish of 
Orleans, where such funds shall be subject to such rules and 
regulations as may be prescribed by the Judges of the Civil 
District Court. The interest thus earned on such deposits shall 
accrue to the party or parties finally decreed to be entitled to 
the ownership thereof. 

Section 10, That the interest to be paid for the deposits of 
the State of Louisiana and of any parish or municipality thereof, 
and of any public board, commission or body created by or 
under authority of the State or of any parish and municipality 
thereof shall be calculated on the daily balances as shown by 
the books of the State Treasurer or the treasurer of the parish, 
municipality or board, as the case may be, and shall be paid 
semi-annually on the first of January and July of each year; 
provided that within the discretion of the depositing authority, 
in a case of emergency justifying such action, any fiscal agency 
may be cancelled without notice ; and in case of such cancella- 
tion, the authority shall proceed as in the case of original letting 
and re-let the deposit for the unexpired term of the original 
contract in the manner and upon the terms and conditions as 
provided in this Act. 

Section 11. That where any fiscal agency or agencies shall 
elect to deposit as security the bonds of any political subdivision 
or board of the State such bonds shall be approved by the de- 
positing authority as sufficient for the indemnity contemplated 
by this Act. If, at any time, any depository bank shall fail or 
suspend, or fail on due demand without just cause to pay any 
funds deposited with it, the State Treasurer, on the direction of 
the Governor, or the other fiscal officer with whom bonds may 
have been deposited as security, on the direction of the au- 
thority which made such letting, shall forthwith, after ten days' 
advertisement in any newspaper or newspapers, published at the 
domicile of said authority, sell such bonds, or a sufficient amount 
thereof to cover the deposit and accrued interest thereon, by 
auction on the floor of the New Orleans Stock Exchange. In 
case any surety company given as surety shall fail, cease to do 



67 



business in this State, or liquidate, new security shall be sub- 
stituted within ten days from demand, else the agency for such 
deposit shall, ipso facto, terminate and reletting of said deposits 
shall be made in accordance with the terms of this Act. In case 
of any default on the part of any fiscal agency or depository as 
aforesaid, when a surety bond has been given as surety, and the 
said surety company shall have failed, within thirty days after 
demand upon it, to pay the amount of such deposit with the 
accrued interest thereon, the State Treasurer, by direction of the 
Governor, or the fiscal ofiicer on the direction of the authority 
that let such deposits as the case may be, shall institute suit in 
the name of the State, or of the proper authority as the case 
may be, against the principal of such surety, or both of them, on 
such bond for the recovery of the amount of such deposits and 
accrued interest and a penalty of ten percentum on the amount 
so sued for, together with costs. Such suits may be brought at 
the designated domicile of either the plaintiff or the defendant. 
In case of any deficiency in amount recovered from the surety 
company or from the sale of bonds as hereinabove provided, the 
same shall be secured by first lien and privilege on all property 
and assets of said depository. 

Section 12. That if at any time the security furnished by a 
fiscal agency or depository bank is not satisfactory to the Treas- 
urer of the State of Louisiana, or to the authority having the 
letting of such funds for deposit he or it may require such ad- 
ditional security to be given as shall be satisfactory to him or it. 
In the event of any bank failing to promptly comply with any 
demands that may be made by the State Treasurer or the proper 
authority in the particular case, for additional or better security, 
a meeting of the Board of Liquidation or of the proper authority 
entrusted with the letting of such funds shall be forthwith con- 
vened, and said Board or authority shall forthwith declare the 
contract with the said fiscal agent bank or depository as can- 
celled, and shall immediately proceed in the same manner as in 
the case of original letting and relet the deposits of such bank 
for the unexpired term of such agency, under the terms and 
upon the conditions provided in this Act. 

Section 13. That the State Treasurer or the Treasurer of 
any parish, municipality, or board shall not be responsible for 



68 



any money or moneys deposited in the bank or banks selected b>' 
the Board of Liquidation or by the authority having the right 
to select such depository under the provisions of the act; but 
the State of Louisiana and the subdivisions and boards thereof 
shall be responsible for the safekeeping and returning of the 
bonds deposited with them by fiscal agent banks and depositories 
as security for the deposit of State moneys and with the proceeds 
arising from any sale thereof. 

Section 14. That any bank which itself or any officer of 
which shall contribute directly or indirectly, or cause to be con- 
tributed any funds in aid of any candidate for any office in the 
State of Louisiana shall be ineligible to receive the deposits of 
the State of Louisiana or of any parish or municipality thereof, 
or any public board, commission or body created by or under 
authority of the State or of any of its subdivisions ; and should 
any bank have been selected as the fiscal agent of any such body 
and it should subsequently appear that it had made or that any 
of its officers had made or caused to be made, directly or indi- 
rectly, contributions to the campaign fund of any candidate for 
any office in the State of Louisiana, then the selection of such 
bank as a fiscal agent shall ''ipso facto" terminate, and the 
proper authorities shall immediately proceed in the same man- 
ner as in the case of original letting and re-let the deposits of 
such bank for the unexpired term of such agency under the 
terms and conditions provided in this act. 

Section 15. That any officer of any bank who shall be a 
member of any board having the authority to let public funds 
of the State of Louisiana or of any board or subdivision thereof 
shall not be permitted to cast any vote in the selection of the 
fiscal agency or the depository of the board of which he' is a 
member. 

Section 16. That nothing in this act shall be construed as 
abrogating or cancelling any existing contract on the part of the 
State of Louisiana, or of any parish, municipality, board, com- 
mission, levee or drainage district or other public body, all of 
which shall remain in full force and effect until their expiration. 

Section 17. That all laws general and special in conflict here- 
with and especially Act No. 316 of the acts of the General As- 
sembly of 1910, be and the same are hereby repealed. 



69 

ACT No. 232 OF 1912. 

Section 1. That Section 1 of Act 222 of the General Assembly 
of the State of Louisiana of the year 1910 be amended and re- 
enacted so as to read as follows : 

Section 1. From and after October 1, 1910, every parent, 
guardian or other person, residing within the boundaries of the 
Parish of Orleans, having control or charge of any child or chil- 
dren between the ages of eight (8) and fourteen (14) years, 
inclusive, shall send such child or children to a public, private, 
denominational, or parochial day school each school year, during 
the time in which the public schools of the Parish of Orleans 
shall be in session, under such penalty for non-compliance here- 
with as is hereinafter provided. Said child or children may be 
excused from such attendance by the Attendance or Truant 
Officers of the Parish, upon the presentation of satisfactory evi- 
dence that the bodily or mental condition of the child or children 
is such as to prevent or render inadvisable attendance at school 
or application to study ; or that such child or children are being 
instructed at home, in the common school branches, or that the 
child or children have completed the prescribed elementary 
school course of study, or if the public school facilities within 
twenty city blocks of the home of the child or children are not 
adequate to accommodate such child or children, provided, that 
no excuse from attendance shall be valid for more than three 
months except where the child has completed the elementary 
course, or if the public school facilities within twenty city blocks 
of the home of the child or children are not adequate to accom- 
modate such child or children. Every parent, guardian, or 
person in the Parish of Orleans having charge or control of a 
child between the ages of 14 and 16 years who is not regularly 
and lawfully engaged for at least six hours each day in some use- 
ful employment or service, shall cause said child to attend regu- 
larly some day school according to the provisions of this section. 

(Accounts State Treasurer Shall Keep, S. 1326, R. S.) 

An account shall be opened on the books of the treasurer, to 
be called the Current School Fund ; such account shall be charged 
with the annual expenditures for the public schools and credited 
with the net receipt for the special taxes laid by the General 



70 

Assembly for the support of the public schools, and with the 
receipts from such other sources as may be designated by law. 

It shall be the duty of the Auditor, in his annual report, to 
present a statement of the condition of said fund, and an 
estimate of the special tax needed for the support of the public 
schools during the ensuing year beyond the receipts for said 
support from other sources. It shall be the duty of the Superin- 
tendent of Public Education to furnish the Auditor with all 
information he may require for his said report. 

(School Fund; How Applied, S. 1327, R. S.) 

The Current School Fund shall be used for the support of 
the public schools, and the surplus of receipts over expenditures 
for any one year, shall be appropriated to the support of public 
schools during the ensuing year; and the Act numbered 224 of 
eighteen hundred and fifty four, and the Acts 180 and 265 of 
eighteen hundred and fifty-five, which direct said surplus to be 
funded, be and the same are hereby repealed. 

(Interest on United States Deposit Funds, S. 1328, R. S.) 

The interest on the United States deposit fund shall be ap- 
propriated to the annual support of the public schools, provided 
by the Constitution ; and it shall be the duty of the Auditor and 
Treasurer annually to transfer from the general fund of the 
treasury to the current school fund the sum of twenty-eight 
thousand seven hundred and ninety-five dollars and fourteen 
cents, the amount of said interest. 

(Special School Taxes Authorized, S. 1, A. 256 of 1910.) 

Parishes, wards, cities, towns, villages, school districts, road 
districts, drainage districts and sub-drainage districts are de- 
clared to be political subdivisions of the State, and special taxes 
may be levied and debt incurred and negotiable bonds issued 
therefor as hereinafter provided, except that the Parish of 
Orleans and the City of New Orleans are exempted from the 
provisions of this Act. The governing authority of subdivisions 
herein defined shall be for parishes, wards and road districts 
within such parish, the Police Jury of the Parish; for cities, 
towns and villages, the municipal boards thereof, for drainage 
and sub-drainage districts, the drainage commissions of the 
drainage district; for school districts, the school board of the 



71 

parish in which they are located, and when a school district is 
composed of lands of more than one Parish, then the school 
board of the parish which furnishes the territory in said school 
district carrying the highest assessment. 

(School Board Authorized to Call Election for Special Taxes, S. 2, A. 
256 of 1910.) 

The Police Jury of any parish acting for the parish, a ward 
or road district therein and the governing authorities of any 
other subdivision as herein defined shall have authority to call 
a special election for the purpose of submitting to the property 
taxpayers who are authorized to vote at such election under the 
Constitution and laws of the State of Louisiana, a proposition 
to levy a special tax not to exceed the limit that is now or may 
hereafter be fixed by the Constitution of Louisiana for the pur- 
pose of giving additional aid to public schools, constructing or 
purchasing any work of public improvement in keeping with the 
objects and purposes for which the subdivision was created, and 
the title to which shall vest in the public or in the subdivision in 
which such tax is levied; and at the same election, similarly 
called and held, a proposition may be submitted to the property 
t>axpayers as to whether or not they will incur debt and issue 
negotiable bonds therefor not to exceed ten (10 per cent) per 
centum of the assessed value of the property for the subdivision 
calling said election, to be issued for the purpose of purchasing 
or constructing works of public improvement in keeping with the 
objects and purposes for which the subdivision was created, and 
the title to which shall vest in the public or subdivision levying 
the tax. That such governing authority shall be required to call 
an election for either of the purposes above mentioned when 
requested to do so by the petition in writing of one-fourth of the 
property taxpayers eligible to vote in said election. 

(Resolution Calling the Election; Publication, S. 3, A. 256, '10.) 

In the resolution calling the election, the rate, object and 
purpose for which the tax is to be levied and the number of 
years it is to run, must be stated. If the proposition is to incur 
debt and issue negotiable bonds therefor, the object for which 
the debt is to be incurred, the number of years it is to run and 
the rate of interest to be paid on same, shall be stated in the 



72 

proposition submitted to the property taxpayers. After such 
resolution is passed, a notice of said election shall be given, 
embracing substantially all things that are required to be set 
forth in the resolution, and shall set forth further that the 
authorities ordering the election will, in open session to be held 
at an hour and place named in such notice, proceed to open the 
ballot boxes, examine and count the ballots in number and 
amount, examine and canvass the returns, and declare the result 
of the election. Such notice shall be advertised for thirty days 
in a weekly newspaper published in the subdivision or parish 
in which the tax is proposed to be levied, and if there is no 
newspaper published in the parish, by posting in three public 
places in the subdivision ordering the election. Four weeks' 
publication in a newspaper shall constitute a publication for 
thirty days, provided thirty days intervene from the date on 
which the publication is first inserted and the day on which the 
election takes place. 

(Who is Entitled to Vote, S. 4, A. 256, '10.) 

The property taxpayers, qualified as electors under the Con- 
stitution and laws of this state, shall be entitled to vote at such 
elections, the qualifications of such taxpayers as voters to be 
those of age, residence and registration as voters; provided that 
resident women taxpayers shall have the right to vote at all 
such elections without registration, in person or by their agents 
authorized in writing, which written authorization shall be at- 
tached to such agent 's ballots, respectively ; provided that, when- 
ever the limit and boundaries of any municipal corporation have 
been extended under the laws of this State, and the assessment 
roll that is to include the property in the extended limits has not 
already been made for said municipal corporations, those who 
have become property taxpayers for ^aid municipal corporation 
by the extension of its limits and who are qualified under the 
Constitution and laws of this State to vote, shall be permitted 
to vote under this Act, and that the assessment of the property 
within such municipal corporation as extended shall, for the 
purpose of ascertaining the assessed valuation of property herein 
and for the purpose, of any election under this Act, be taken 
from the last assessment roll of the parish. 



73 

(Election Held Under Supervision and at Expense of School Board, 
S. 5, A. 256, MO.) 

Such elections shall be conducted under the supervision and 
at the expense of the subdivision ordering the same, the govern- 
ing authority of which shall appoint for each polling place three 
commissioners and one clerk of election (all of whom shall be 
registered voters), designate the polling places, provide the ballot 
boxes, ballots, the necessary blanks for tally sheets, lists of voters, 
valuation of property and compiled statement of the voters in 
number and amount, and fix the compensation of such election 
officers. 

(Duty of Registrar of Voters, S. 6, A. 26, MO.) 

It shall be the duty of the registrar of voters to furnish the 
commissioners appointed to hold such election with the lists of 
taxpayers entitled to vote in person or by proxy at such elections, 
together with the valuation of each taxpayer's property as shown 
by the assessment roll last made and filed prior to each election ; 
provided that, when any taxpayer's name and valuation of prop- 
erty shall be omitted from such list or erroneously entered there- 
on the commissioners of election shall have authority to receive 
affidavits of such taxpayer's right to vote and of the proper 
assessed valuation of his property, whicb, affidavit shall be at- 
tached to such taxpayer's ballot. 

(Manner of Challenging Voters, S. 7, A. 256, MO.) 

Whenever the vote of any taxpayer shall be challenged, the 
commissioners of election shall receive in writing the grounds of 
challenge, signed by the person or persons challenging such vote, 
together with the challenged taxpayer's statement of his asserted 
right to vote, and attach such challenge and statement to his 
ballot. 

(Form of Ballots, S. 8, A. 256, MO.) 

The ballots provided for any election held under the provi- 
sions of this Act shall be of such form as to enable the voters 
to vote in favor or against the proposition submitted, and that 
when more than one proposition shall be submitted at the same 
time, they shall be so submitted as to enable one voter to vote 



74 

on each proposition separately. The ballots to be used at such 
election shall be in the following form : 

For the Levying of a Tax. 



Proposition to levy a 

mill (Rate) 
tax on all the property subject to State taxation in 
for the period 

(Subdivision) 

of for the purpose of 

(Term) 

(Here state the purpose of the tax) 
Taxable valuation $ 



(Signature of Voter). 



Yes 



No 



Notice to Voteks : To vote in favor of the proposition sub- 
mitted upon this ballot place a cross ( X ) mark in the square 
after the word ' ' Yes ; " to vote against it place a similar mark 
after the word "No." 

For the Issuance of Bonds. 



Proposition to incur debt and issue bonds of 

to the amount of 

(Subdivision) 

(Amount) 

to run years, bear- 

(Term) 

ing interest at the rate of 

(Rate) 

per centum per annum, payable for the 

(Annually or semi-annually) for the purpose of 
(Here state the purpose of debt) 

Taxable valuation $ 

Signature of Voter. 



Yes 



No 



75 



Notice to Voters: To vote in favor of the proposition sub- 
mitted upon this ballot place a cross ( X ) mark in the square 
after the word ' ' Yes ; " to vote against it place a similar mark 
after the word "No." 

Note- — The voter must write his name on the back of his ticket. 
(Manner of Selecting Substitute Commissioners, etc., S. 9, A. 256, MO.) 

Whenever any commissioner or clerk of election, appointed 
as provided in Section five of this Act shall be unable, fail, or 
neglect to attend or serve at the polling place designated at the 
hour fixed for the opening of the polls, or within one hour there- 
after, the commissioner or commissioners present shall appoint, 
or in the absence of all the commissioners the voters present shall 
elect the necessary number of commissioners and clerks, who shall 
have the same powers, compensation and duties as other commis- 
sioners and clerks, to serve in the place and stead of such absent 
or delinquent appointees. 

(Oath of Election Officers, S. 10, A. 256, '10.) 

The commissioners and clerks of such elections, before open- 
ing the polls, shall be sworn to perform all the duties incumbent 
on them as such, the oath to be taken before any officer author- 
ized to administer oaths, or by the Clerk and each commissioner 
before any other commissioner, such commissioners of election 
being authorized to administer any oath and to receive any 
affidavit provided for in this Act. 

(Voter's Name to Be Endorsed on Ballot, S. 11, A. 256, '10.) 

Each voter's name shall be endorsed on his ballot; provided 
that ballots voted by proxy shall have endorsed thereon the 
names of both the taxpayer and of her proxy. 

Note. — Attorney General Guion ruled that persons voting for a special 
school tax or having to vote for a proposition to fund taxes Into bonds shall 
endorse their names on the back of the tickets. The voter's name and the 
value of his property will appear on the face of the ticket in the blanks 
arranged for this purpose, but the voter's name should also be endorsed on 
the back of the ticket. 

(Manner of Voting, S. 12, A. 256, '10.) 

The commissioners of election shall receive the ballot of each 
voter, check his name, or that of his principal, on the list of 
voters furnished by the register as having voted, enter and 
number his name, or that of his principal, on the list of tax- 
payers voting, and immediately deposit his ballot in the ballot 



76 

box, reserving to each voter the right to so fold his ballot that it 
shall not be known at the time of his voting whether he has 
voted in favor of or against the proposition or propositions sub- 
mitted. 

(Time of Opening and Closing Polls, S. 13, A. 256, '10.) 

The polls of election ordered and held under the provisions 
of this act shall, on the day appointed for any such election, open 
at seven o'clock a. m. and remain open until and not later than 
five 'clock p. m. ; provided that no election shall be vitiated by a 
failure to open the polls at the time prescribed or by closing the 
same before the time prescribed, unless, on a contest, it be proven 
that voters were thereby deprived of their votes sufficient in 
number and amount to have changed the result of such election. 

(Manner of Compiling Votes, S. 14, A. 256, '10.) 

That immediately after the closing of the polls, the commis- 
sioners shall, in the presence of the bystanders proceed to open 
the ballot boxes, count the ballots found in the box and check 
same with the list of voters kept, then proceed to count the votes 
in number and amount, keep in duplicate tally sheets showing 
the votes in number in favor of and against the proposition or 
propositions submitted and showing valuation of property in 
favor of and against same, make in duplicate compiled state- 
ments of the vote in number and amount, both in favor of and 
against such proposition or propositions; that after swearing to 
the correctness of the numbered list of voters, the duplicate tally 
sheets and duplicate compiled statements, they shall deposit the 
ballots the registrar's list of voters, the numbered list of tax- 
payers voting, one duplicate tally sheet and one duplicate com- 
piled statement, in the ballot box, immediately seal up said ballot 
box and, within forty-eight hours after the closing of the polls, 
deliver said sealed ballot boxes with their contents to the author- 
ities ordering such election and shall within the same delay de- 
liver the other duplicate tally sheet and the other duplicate com- 
piled statement to the Clerk of the District Court of the parish 
in which such election has been held, who shall file the same in 
his office. 

If the election commissioners on counting the ballots find 
that they do not correspond with the list of voters, they shall 



77 



before counting the ballots, examine same for the purpose of 
finding the discrepency; and if it should be found that any 
ballots have been duplicated the same shall be destroyed, or if 
it is found that the name of the voter has been omitted from the 
list of persons voting, same shall be added to said list. 

(Returns Canvassed by Governing Authority, S. 15, A. 256, '10.) 

On the day and at the hour and place named in the notice 
ordering such election, the authorities under whose orders such 
election has been held, shall, in public session, proceed to open 
the ballot boxes, examine and count the ballots in number and 
amount, examine and canvass the returns and declare the results 
of such election, which result they shall thereafter promulgate 
by publication in one issue of the official journal, or other news- 
paper of the parish, where there is no official paper, or by post- 
ing where no newspaper is published. 

(Proces Verbal Required, S. 15, A. 256, '10.) 

The authority ordering the election shall keep a proces verbal 
of the manner in which the ballot boxes have been opened, the 
returns canvassed and the result of the election ascertained and 
shall forward a copy of said proces verbal to the Secretary of 
State, who shall record the same, another copy to the Clerk of 
the District Court who shall also record said copy in the mort- 
gage records of the parish, and the remaining copy shall be re- 
tained in the archives of the office of the authority ordering the 
election. 

(Returns Kept Three Months, S. 16, A. 256, '10.) 

The custodian of the archives or records of the authority 
ordering such election shall preserve, for the term of three 
months from the date of promulgation of such election the bal- 
lots and other returns thereof. 

(Election Incontestible After Sixty Days, S. 17, A. 256, '10.) 

For a period of sixty days from the date of the promulgation 
of the result of any such election, any person in interest shall 
have the right to contest the legality of such election for any 
cause; after which time no one shall have any cause of action 
to contest the regularity, formality, or legality of said election 
for any cause whatever. If the validity of any election held 



78 

under the provisions of this Act is not raised within sixty days 
herein prescribed, then no governing authority of any sub- 
division herein named, required to levy a tax or issue bonds 
as authorized at an election or under this Act, shall be permitted 
to refuse to perform that duty and urge as an excuse or reason 
therefor, that some provision of the Constitution or law of 
Louisiana has not been complied with, but it shall be conclusively 
presumed that every legal requirement has been complied with, 
and no court shall have authority to inquire into such matters 
after the lapse of sixty days as herein provided. 

(Majority in Number and Amount Necessary to Carry an Election, S. 
18, A. 256, '10.) 
Any proposition submitted by the governing authority of any 
subdivision as herein authorized either for the purpose of levying 
a tax, incurring a debt, or issuing bonds, must be voted for by a 
majority in number and amount of the property taxpayers, quali- 
fied as electors under the Constitution and laws of this State, 
voting at an election held for that purpose as herein provided, 
before any such tax shall be levied, or before any debt shall be 
incurred or bonds issued. 

(Duty of Governing Authority to Levy and Assess Special Tax, S. 19, 
A, 256, '10.) 

In the event that any election ordered and held as aforesaid 
shall result in' favor of the proposition to levy and assess special 
taxes upon the property subject to taxation in the Subdivision, 
the Police Jury for the Parish, Ward or Road District and the 
Governing Authority of any other Subdivision named herein 
shall, after the promulgation of the result of such election and 
pursuant to the terms of the proposition submitted levy and 
assess the said special taxes on such property. 

(Tax Not to Exceed Constitutional Limitation.) 

Provided that the total rate of taxation so imposed shall not 
exceed the Constitutional limit, nor shall such tax run for a 
greater number of years than the number named in the proposi- 
tion submitted, nor be imposed for any other purpose than that 
named in such proposition. 

(Bonds; Regulations for Same, S. 20, A. 256, MO.) 

In the event that any election ordiered and held for the pur- 



79 

pose of incurring debt and issuing negotiable bonds therefor 
shall result in favor of the proposition, the Police Juries for their 
respective Parishes, Wards or Road Districts and the governing 
authorities of all other Subdivisions shall, after the promulgation 
of the result of such election and pursuant to the terms of the 
proposition submitted, by resolution incur the debt and issue 
negotiable bonds therefor, to be signed by the President or Chair- 
man and Secretary of the authority issuing the bonds, provided 
the bonds shall be issued for no other purpose than that stated 
in the submission of the proposition to the property taxpayers, 
nor for a greater amount than therein mentioned, nor for any 
other purpose than the purpose set forth in the proposition sub- 
mitted to the property taxpayers and as authorized by the Consti- 
tution of the State, nor run for a longer time than that named 
in the proposition not exceeding forty years nor bear a greater 
rate of interest than five (5) per centum per annum, payable 
annually, nor issued for a greater amount than ten per centum 
of the assessed value of the subdivision, including any prior bond 
issue nor be sold by the authorities issuing same for less than par. 

(Collection of Taxes Governed by General Laws, S. 23, A. 256, MO.) 

All the articles and provisions of the Constitution of 1898 and 
all the laws in force or that may be hereafter enacted regulating 
and relating to the collection of State taxes and tax sales shall 
also apply to and regulate the collection of the special taxes or 
forced contribution, imposed under the provisions of this Act, 
through the officer whose duty it shall be to collect the taxes and 
moneys due the municipal corporation, parish, or drainage dis- 
trict, imposing such special taxes, or forced contributions. 

(Proceeds of Bonds a Trust Fund for Payment of Interest and Prin- 
cipal of Bonds, S. 24, A. 256, '10.) 

The proceeds of the sale of all bonds issued under the pro- 
visions of this Act shall constitute a trust fund, to be used ex- 
clusively for the purpose or purposes for which said bonds are 
authorized to be issued. That any income derived from the 
particular improvement purchased or constructed, when so set 
aside by resolution of the governing body of the subdivision, 
shall, after the expense and cost of maintenance of said improve- 
ments are paid, constitute a trust fund to be devoted to the pay- 



1^ 



80 

ment of the interest on the indebtedness so contracted, and any 
surplus, after the payment of such interest, shall be placed in 
the sinking fund to be used in the extinguishment of the principal 
of said obligation or bonds at maturity. 

(Proceeds of Special Taxes Collected a Trust Fund, S. 25, A. 256, '10.) 

The proceeds of any special tax which have been voted for a 
particular purpose as authorized by the Constitution and the 
provisions of this Act shall constitute a trust fund to be used 
exclusively for the objects and purposes for which the tax was 
levied and shall from year to year as collected be kept separate 
and used for no other purpose than the purpose for which the 
said tax was voted. 

(Sinking Fund to Be Set Aside, S. 26, A. 256, '10.) 

If the bonds to be issued are to be paid out of funds realized 
from a tax, an acreage tax or forced contribution, which tax, 
acreage tax or forced contribution is limited and a fixed amount 
required to be collected each year, then the governing authority 
issuing the bonds and levying the acreage tax, shall, beginning 
at a yearly period before the maturity of such debt or bonds, 
which period shall never be less than one-fourth of the whole 
term for which said debt is incurred, or said bonds are issued, set 
aside annually, from said trust fund derived from said tax, 
acreage tax or forced contribution, a sinking fund for the pay- 
ment of the principal of said debt, or said bonds, at least one 
fraction of the principal of said debt, on said bonds, said frac- 
tion to be ascertained by dividing the principal of said debt or 
of said bonds by the remaining number of whole years before 
■ the maturity of said debt or bonds; and that the sinking fund 
thus set aside shall be sacredly applied to the payment of such 
debt and such bonds. The time from the commencement of the 
provision of a sinking fund as herein required, until the ma- 
turity of the said debt or of said bonds to be known as the re- 
demption period. 

(Tax to Pay Principal and Interest Must Be Levied Every Year, S. 27, 

A. 256, '10.) 

The governing authority of a Subdivision incurring debt and 

issuing bonds as herein contemplated, shall annually, at the same 

time that the other taxes are levied, or' at any other time, in addi- 



81 



tioii to all other taxes now authorized by the Constitution and 
laws of the State of Louisiana, and in addition to any special 
tax that may be levied at any election called and held for 
that purpose, levy a tax sufficient to pay the interest and prin- 
cipal on said bonds becoming due the ensuing year. When a 
period is fixed at which such bonds shall begin to mature, the 
total amount of indebtedness shall be divided among the num- 
ber of years in which payments are to be made and the prin- 
cipal to be paid each year, fixed at such amount that when the 
total annual interest is added thereto the amount to be paid each 
year shall be as nearly equal and uniform as possible. Such tax 
may be levied and extended upon the assessment roll at any 
time prior to the final collection of the taxes for that particular 
year. If the authority herein authorized to levy and assess such 
tax should fail, neglect or refuse to do so before the completion 
of the assessment rolls, the Auditor of Public Accounts shall be 
authorized and it shall be his duty to name the rate of such tax 
and order same extended upon the assessment rolls and collected. 

(Maturity of Bonds Must Be Fixed, S. 28, A. 256, '10.) 

Whenever a debt has been authorized to be incurred, the 
governing authority issuing bonds' to evidence such debt shall 
fix a time certain at which the bonds shall begin to mature, 
which shall not be longer than five years from the date of said 
bonds. After fixing such date, then the governing authorities 
shall fix the denomination of the bonds due each year thereafter 
for an amount that when the annual interest is added thereto 
the total amount to be paid, including principal and interest, 
each year shall be as nearly equal as practicable. 

(Bonds Shall Be Registered by Secretary of State, S. 31, A. 256, '10.) 

All bonds issued by any of the subdivisions of the State as 
herein defined, shall, after the time has elapsed in which the 
validity of such bonds can be contested, to-wit, sixty days from 
the date of the promulgation of the result of the election, in- 
curring the debt and ordering the issuing of such bonds, be reg- 
istered by the Secretary of State and shall have endorsed thereon 
the words : ' ' This bond secured by a tax. Registered on this the 

day of , 19 . . , " and signed by 

the Secretary of State with the Great Seal of Louisiana affixed. 



82 

(Election Officers Vested with Same Authority as in General Elections, 
S. 32, A. 256, MO.) 
The commissioners and clerks of elections held under the 
provisions of this Act shall have the same powers and duties in 
conducting said elections and in preserving order at the polls, 
as are conferred and imposed upon such officers under the 
general election laws of this State ; and that whatever is declared 
in the general election laws to be a felony, other crime, or mis- 
demeanor, shall , be such for any election held under the pro- 
visions of this Act, and shall be punished in the same manner; 
that any willful failure or neglect to comply with the require- 
ments of this Act or any willful violation of same, by any officer, 
agent, or employee, of any subdivision herein defined, availing 
itself of the provisions of this Act, shall be a crime and shall 
be punished by a fine of not less than twenty-five dollars nor 
more than five hundred dollars, or by imprisonment not exceed- 
ing one year, with or without hard labor, or by both such fine 
or imprisonment, at the discretion of the court. 

(All Special Tax Elections Hereafter, Governed by This Act, S. 33, 
A. 256, '10.) 

Nothing in this Act shall be held or construed to invalidate, 
or render illegal the acts, proceedings, elections, taxes, debts, 
bonds, ordinances, resolutions, bids, agreements, contracts or 
obligations, done, had, held, levied, authorized to be levied, in- 
curred, authorized to be incurred, issued, authorized to be is- 
sued, adopted, accepted, or entered into, pursuant to any article 
of the Constitution, by any subdivision herein named (the City 
of New Orleans excepted) prior to the passage of this Act; 
that any provision in the charter of any municipal corporation 
of this State (the City of New Orleans excepted) in conflict with 
the provisions of this Act for the immediate submission of the 
proposition herein specified to the property taxpayers of said 
corporation in an election ordered by same under this Act and 
for the immediate levy of said tax when duly authorized, be 
and the same, insofar as it is in conflict therewith, is hereby 
repealed. 

OPINION OF ATTORNEY GENERAL GUION ON QUALIFICATIONS 
OF VOTERS IN SPECIAL SCHOOL TAX ELECTIONS. 

1. A person who may have purchased property from another, 



83 



in whose name the same was standing, may vote at a special 
election, as the owner of such property, although his name does 
not appear on the assessment roll, for Act No. 256 of 1910 pro- 
vides, in Section 4, that it is "property taxpayers, qualified as 
electors under the Constitution and laws of this State ' ' who may 
vote at such elections. 

The law does not indicate that the property should be assessed 
in the name of the voter, but that he should be the owner of the 
property, or, in other words, the taxpayer who offers to vote. 
In other words, where property is assessed in the name of a 
certain person, who sells the same, the purchaser may vote at 
a special tax election, the value of such property, although the 
property is assessed in the name of another. 

2. A qualified voter, owning property, may vote the same at 
such election, if registered as a voter and if he has paid his poll 
taxes, and his signature may be made by making his ordinary 
mark attested by the commissioners of election. 

3. The registration books must close thirty days before the 
election, for Article 213 of the Constitution of 1898 declares that 
"electors shall not be registered within thirty days next preced- 
ing any election at which they may offer to vote." 

(The above opinion was rendered August 24, 1911.) 

OPINION GIVEN BY ATTORNEY GENERAL PLEASANT ON QUAL- 
IFICATIONS OF VOTERS IN SPECIAL SCHOOL 
TAX ELECTIONS. 

Man. 

1. Must be twenty-one years of age, or older, and resident of 
taxing district. 

2. Must be duly registered as voter more than thirty days 
before the election. 

3. Must have been assessed, in the taxing district to be 
affected, with property the year previous to the year in which 
the special election is held. 

4. Payment of necessary poll taxes is required — that is, men 
between the ages of twenty-one and twenty-three must have paid 
pII poll taxes assessed against them, and men between the ages of 
twenty-three and sixty must have paid poll taxes for and during 



84 



the two years next preceding the year in which they offer to vote, 
but men over the age of sixty are not required to pay poll taxes. 

5. If residence has been changed from precinct less than six 
months before the election, voter may return and cast his ballot 
in said precinct. If he has lived in the new precinct more than 
six months, he must change his registration to the new precinct 
in order to vote, as he cannot vote in the old precinct. 

6. A man cannot vote by proxy, neither can he vote his 
property by proxy. He must cast his ballot personally for 
himself and for his property. 

Woman. 

1. Must be twenty-one years of age, or older, and resident of 
taxing district. 

2. Same as paragraph 3, supra, with reference to men. 

3. May vote without registration or poll tax, and either in 
person or by any agent authorized in writing. 

Property. 

1. x\ll assessed personal and real property, located anywhere 
in the taxing district, owned by voter in separate estate may be 
voted (except such as may be indicated below). 

2. The survivor in community, whose interest in the commu- 
nity is judicially established and assessed, may vote the property. 

3. A resident taxpayer owning shares of stock in a bank 
within the limits of a taxing district may vote the property. 

4. A usufructuary is not a property taxpayer with' respect 
to the propertAi subject to the usufruct and cannot vote the 
property. 

5. Decedents' estates cannot be voted. 

6. Joint owners of assessed property may vote, each to the 
extent of his individual interest, but the property must not be 
owned by the firm and in a firm name, such as "Jones Bros." or 
"John Doe & Co;" but, if owned by Robert Jones and Edward 
Jones, for instance, the title must so show, giving their names 
specifically, in which event it may be voted as above indicated. 
See 112 La. Eep., p. 783. 

7. Corporations qannot vote, nor can the shares therein be 
voted, except bank stock, as above shown (see tax statute of 
1898). Neither can any other kind of company or association of 



85 1 

persons, as such, vote, nor will the signatures of same give effect 
to a petition calling for an election. 

See Constitution, Art. 197, et seq. ; Articles 270 and 281 ; Act 
20 of 1898; Act 22 of 1904; Sec. 3 of Act 145 of 1902; Act 218 
of 1912. 

(Date of above opinion. May 18, 1914.) 

AN OPINION BY ATTORNEY GENERAL COCO. 

Circular No. 660, Part II. 

' ' Office of the Attorney General 
New Orleans, Louisiana, 
June 24, 1918. 
Hon. Paul Capdevielle, Auditor, 

Baton Bouge, Louisiana. 
Dear Sir: 

This will acknowledge receipt of your communieation of the 
19th instant, in. which you ask my advice as to whether Sections 
2958 to 2963 of the Revised Statutes providing for the sale of 
16th section school lands by the Parish Treasurer has been 
repealed and superseded by Section 59 of Act 120 of 1916, which 
provides for the sale of such lands by the Parish School Boards. 

Section 2958 of the Revised Statutes makes it the duty of the 
Parish Treasurer of the several parishes in the State to have the 
sense of the inhabitants of the township to" which such lands may 
belong taken by election as to whether the sale thereof should be 
made, and then provides for the submission of the question to the 
inhabitants of the township in which such lands are located. 

Section 2959 provides for the survey of these lands before 
their sale and for the payment of such survey by the Auditor 
out of the proceeds of the sale. 

Section 2960 provides that in case the majority of the votes 
cast in said election shall give their assent to the sale, the result 
shall be made known to the Auditor of Public Accounts, and 
' ' upon his order the said lands shall be sold at public auction, 
etc. And said section further provides that the notes given for 
the deferred purchase price "shall be made payable to the 
Auditor of Public Accounts ' ' and then provides for the fore- 



86 

closure of the mortgage to secure the payment of these notes, 
upon the purchaser defaulting in their payment. 

Section 2961 provides for the compensation to the Parish 
Treasurer for conducting the election and making the sale. 

Section 2963 provides for the submission to the people of 
any township the annual interest payable on the funds deposited 
to their credit or the annual receipts on the loans made of funds 
realized from such sales. 

Section 59 of Act 120 of 1916 provides that ' ' all elections to 
authorize the sale of the 16th section lands and the sale when 
authorized shall be conducted by the Parish School Boards." 

In my opinion, the sections of the Revised Statutes above 
referred to are in no manner affected or changed by Section 59 
of Act 120 of 1916 above referred to, except in that, by the latter 
statute the agency for conducting these elections and authorizing 
the sale of these lands is changed from the Parish Treasurer to 
the School Boards. 

So that, if you insert in lieu of Parish Treasurer, Parish 
School Boards, in the sections above referred to, you will have 
the full text of the law in relation to conducting the election for 
the sale and the sale when authorized by such election; the in- 
tention of the change, as I understand it, being to give the School 
Boards the control of the subject matter, to which it rightfully 
belongs. 

This idea is strengthened by the fact that the School Boards 
are also given authority to rent 16th section lands and to sell 
the timber or mineral rights of the same by mere resolution and 
without the authority of the vote of the electors of the township 
in which said lands are located, as heretofore required by Sec- 
tion 2962 of the Revised Statutes. 

When the Auditor of Public Accounts is notified that the sale 
of such lands has been authorized by the election, he, the Auditor, 
orders that the sale be made by the School Board instead of by 
the Parish Treasurer and in other respects the statutes are not 
changed and should be carried as h'eretofore. 

You ask whether under Section 59 of Act 120 of 1916 the 
School Board may retain the two and one-half per cent commis- 
sion allowed the Parish Treasurer under Section 2961 of the 



87 

Revised Statutes for his services for making such sales, and in 
answer to this, I beg to say that the School Board would not, in 
my opinion, be entitled to this commission, as it is the ultimate 
beneficiary of such sales and the School Board is composed of 
members whose compensation is fixed by law and they would not 
be entitled to additional pay, except by special statutory pro- 
vision. 

Yours very truly, 

(Signed) A. V. Coco, 

Attorney General. 



(Agriculture and Home Economics to Be Taught in Schools, A. 306, '10.) 

In addition to the branches in which instruction is now given 
in the public schools of the State of Louisiana, instruction shall 
also be given in all the elementary and secondary schools of the 
State in the principles of agriculture or horticulture and in 
home and farm economy. 

{Receipt for Poll Tax, S. 1, A. 87, '10.) 

Before any persons serving as jurors or witnesses in criminal 
cases shall receive the compensation to which they are entitled 
for their mileage and per diem, they shall exhibit to the clerk of 
the court a receipt for the poll tax or taxes due by them. 

(Deduction of Witnesses' and Jurors' Compensation, for Poll Tax, S. 2, 
A. 87, '86.) 

On their failure to produce such receipt the clerk of court or 
other ofiicer, issuing certificates or warrants for their mileage 
and per diem, shall issue certificates or warrants for amount less 
the poll tax due, and shall issue the certificate or warrants for 
amounts so reserved for poll tax, to the treasurer of the school 
board of the parish, who shall collect same. 

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of 
Louisiana, That Section 3 of Act 87 of 1886 be amended and re- 
enacted so as to read as follows : Section 3. Be it further enacted, 
etc.. That the clerk of the court or other officer issuing such cer- 
tificates or warrants shall immediately report to the tax collector 
of the parish the names of all persons from whom he has col- 
lected the poll tax; whereupon the said tax collector shall issue 



to the person or persons a poll tax receipt, but the clerk of court 
or other officer issuing such certificates or warrants shall have 
no authority to issue, and shall not issue, any such poll tax 
receipt for such collections. 

Note. — The custom of some tax collectors of claiming and collecting 
commissions for the retention of polls by the Clerks of Court is without 
foundation in law, as the tax collector in no sense collects the tax and is 
entitled to no commission thereon. 

(Poll Tax Collections of Orleans, S. 1, A. 56, '94.) 

The collections of poll taxes in the Parish of Orleans, to- 
gether with all the processes, commissions and obligations inci- 
dent thereto as now provided by law, are vested in the treasurer 
of the City of New Orleans. 

(Election on Sale of School Lands, S. 2958, R. S.) 

It shall be the duty of the parish treasurers of the several 
parishes in this State to have taken the sense of the inhabitants 
of the township, to which they may belong, any lands heretofore 
reserved and appropriated by Congress for the use of schools, 
whether or not the same shall be sold, and the proceeds invested 
as authorized by an Act of Congress, approved February 15, 
1843. * * * Polls shall be opened and held in each township 
after advertisement, for thirty days, at three of the most public 
places in the town, and at the courthouse door, and the sense of 
the legal voters therein shall be taken within the usual hours, 
and in the usual manner of holding elections, which elections 
shall be held and votes received by a member of the parish school 
board or a justice of the peace ; and if a majority of the legal 
voters be in favor of selling the school lands therein, the same 
may be sold, but not otherwise. The result of all such elections 
shall be transmitted to the parish treasurer, and by him to the 
State Superintendent. 

Note. — Act 120, 1916, makes' it the duty of the parish school boards to 
take entire charge of elections to authorize the sale of sixteenth sections, and 
to sell same when authorized by the voters in the townships. The parish 
treasurer no longer has any connection with these matters. 

(Survey, S. 2959, R. S.) 

Before making sale of the school lands belonging to the State, 
it shall be the duty of the parish treasurer, or other persons 
whose duty it may become to superintend the sales, to cause a re- 
survey of such lines as from any cause may have become ob- 



89 

literated or uncertain ; and for this purpose he is authorized to 
employ the parish surveyor, or on his default, any competent 
surveyor; and the lines thus surveyed shall be marked in such 
manner as to enable those interested to make a thorough exami- 
nation before sale, and all advertisements made for the sale of 
such lands shall contain a full description thereof according to 
the original survey and that required by this section. The 
expenses of the survey shall be paid by the Auditor of Public 
Accounts out of the proceeds of the sale of the lands on the 
warrant of the parish treasurer. 

Note. — The State is the trustee of these lands or of the proceeds of their 
sale for the use of the inhabitants of the township in which they are located — 
vide. Board of School Directors vs. Ober, 32 A. 419. 

(Rights of Way May Be Granted to the United States by the School 
Boards, A. 14, '08.) 

The Parish Board of School Directors of any parish within 
the State shall have authority by resolution duly passed by said 
board, when in its judgment it is to the manifest interest of the 
public in general, and in order to facilitate the construction, 
maintenance and operation of canals, or a portion of a canal, or 
branch of any canal, constructed by or under the authority of 
the United States for the purpose of transportation or for pur- 
poses of extension or improvement of the public waterways, to 
donate to the United States of America rights of way over and 
across any of the lands belonging to the public schools located 
within the parish in which said board is constituted or organized, 
which grant or donation may be made without any previous ad- 
vertisement thereof, when authorized by a resolution of said 
board to sign an act of conveyance evidencing such grant or 
donation; provided, however, that the said Parish Boards of 
School Directors shall in every case reserve the right to control, 
occupy and use anj^ part of said rights of way not actually 
needed by the United States in the manner and to the same 
extent as before conveying said rights of way, and also the right 
to transfer, lease, quit-claim, or otherwise dispose of the said 
rights of way and every part thereof, subject to the grant made 
to the United States. 

(Sale on the Order of the Auditor, S. 2960, R. S.) 

If the majority of the votes taken in a township shall give 



90 



their assent to the sale of the lands aforesaid, the parish treasurer 
shall forthwith notify the Auditor of Public Accounts of the vote 
thus taken, and upon his order the said lands shall be sold by the 
parish treasurer, at public auction, before the courthouse door, by 
the sheriff or an auctioneer to be employed by the treasurer at his 
expense, to the highest bidder, in quantities not less than 40 acres, 
nor more than 160, after having been previously appraised by 
three sworn appraisers, selected by the parish treasurer and re- 
corder of the parish, after thirty (30) days' advertisement, but in 
no case at a less sum than appraised value, payable on a credit 
of ten years, as follows : ten per cent in cash and the balance in 
nine annual installmjents, the interest to be paid on the whole 
amount, annually, at the rate of eight per cent per annum; the 
notes shall be made payable to the Auditor of Public Accounts, 
secured by special mortgage on the land sold, and personal secur- 
ity in solido, until final payment of principal and interest ; in 
event of the purchaser neglecting or refusing to pay any of these 
installments or interest at maturity, the mortgage shall be forth- 
with closed, and the parish treasurer is hereby authorized to ad- 
vertise and sell the land as before provided for, and further au- 
thorized and required to execute all acts of sale on behalf of the 
State for any such lands sold, to receive the cash payment and 
notes given for the purchase, which shall be made payable to the 
State Treasurer, and to place the same in the office of the Auditor 
of Public Accounts for collection; all cash received, either for 
principal or interest, from said sales shall be transmitted by him 
to the State Treasurer, and any moneys thus received into the 
State Treasury from sales aforesaid shall bear interest at the rate 
of four per cent per annum, and be credited to the township to 
which the same belongs according to the provisions of the Act of 
Congress. The parish treasurer shall forthwith notify the State 
Superintendent of the results of all sales made by him. The par- 
ish treasurer shall be authorized to receive the whole amount bid 
for the lands, deducting the eight per cent interest which the 
credits will bear. (See Supreme Court decision as to price, etc.) 

Note. — The above act has been amended by Act 57 of '84, changing 6 
per cent to 4 per cent. 

(Sale of Uninhabitable Lands, S. 1, A. 108, '94.) 

All sixteenth section lands located in a township not habitable 



91 



by reason of the land being swamp or sea marsh, the school board 
of the parish in which such lands are located may present an ap- 
plication for sale of such sixteenth section land to the Auditor of 
Public Accounts, in which they shall set forth the location of the 
township, its character and the reason upon which a sale is de- 
sired, and upon receipt of such application duly signed by the 
president and secretary thereof, the Auditor may authorize the 
sale, if in his judgment a sale should be made. 

(Sale Conducted in the Same Manner as Others, S. 2, A. 168, '94.) 

In case a sale is ordered as provided for in Section 1 of this 
Act, the parish treasurer shall make such sale in the same manner, 
and upon the terms and conditions as is now provided by law, for 
the sale of sixteenth section lands; provided this Act shall not 
apply to sixteenth sections now leased to parties for a term of 
years. 

(Sale of Sections Divided by Parish Lines, A. 147, '57.) 

When the sixteenth section of any township is divided by a 
parish line, the treasurer of the parish in which a greater portion 
of the section may lie, shall proceed to take the sense of the people 
of the township, and to sell the same as provided by law, as if tke 
whole section lay in his parish ; provided, that the same shall be 
advertised at the courthouses of both parishes. 

(Treasurer's Commission, A. 33, '59.) 

Parish treasurers of the several parishes shall be entitled to re- 
tain out of the proceeds of the sale of sixteenth sections effected 
by them a percentage of two and one-half on the amount of said 
sales, to be deducted from the cash payment, and the same shall 
be in full compensation of their services. 

(Proceeds of Lands Accruing to Townships, S. 2963, R. S.) 

All moneys that have been or may hereafter be received into 
the State Treasury, and the interest that has or may accrue there- 
on from the sale of sixteenth sections of school lands or the school 
land warrants belonging to the various townships in the State, 
shall be placed to the credit of the township, and should the peo- 
ple of any township desire to receive for the use of the schools 
therein the annual interest payable by the State on funds depos- 
ited to their credit, or the annual proceeds of the loans, the parish 



92 



treasurer shall, on the petition of five legal voters in any such 
township, order an election to be held in the township, as pro- 
vided for the sale of township lands; and if a majority of any 
number of votes above seven be in favor of receiving annually 
the accruing interest as aforesaid, the same shall be paid to the 
treasurer of the parish for the use of the township or district; 
otherwise the interest shall be an accumulating fund to their 
credit until called for. 

(Mode of Annulling Sales, S. 2965, R. S.) 

In all cases of the sale of the school lands known as sixteenth 
sections, heretofore made, where the purchase money has not been 
paid, the purchaser or purchasers shall have the right to annul 
the sale upon application to the district court of the parish where 
the land is situated ; provided, that the judgment of nullity shall 
be obtained at the cost of the applicant and contradictorily with 
the district attorney, in conjunction with the school directors of 
the district in which said land is situated, who shall be miade a 
party defendant in such suit ; provided, also, that it shall appear 
upon the hearing that the value of the land has not been impaired 
by any act of the purchaser ; and provided further, that nothing 
ia this Act shall be so construed as to entitle the said purchaser to 
repayment of any part of the purchase money already paid. 

(Auditor's Duty in the Collection of Notes, S. 1, A. 57, '84.) 

It shall be the duty of the Auditor of Public Accounts, im- 
mediately on the passage of this Act, to forward for collection to 
the treasurer of the school board in their respective parishes 
throughout the State, all the notes given for the purchase price 
of sixteenth sections, or any part thereof, known as free school 
lands, whenever any installment of said purchase price has be- 
come due or may become due, and it shall be the duty of said 
treasurer of the parish school board to receive and receipt for 
same. 

(School Board Treasurer's Duty in the Collection of Notes, S. 2, A. 57, 
'84.) 

It shall be the duty of the treasurer of the parish school board, 
on receipt of the notes due and given for said sixteenth sections, 
to immediately notify the principal and his sureties, in writing, of 
the amount of said note, principal and interest, due and unpaid ; 



93 



provided, said lands for which said notes were given are still in 
possession of the original purchaser, and if in the possession of 
other parties, such possessors shall also be likewise notified of all 
the den:<ands, principals and interest, against said lands, and if 
all the demands against the same be not satisfied within thirty 
days from said notice, it shall be the duty of the treasurer of the 
parish school board to turn over said notes to the district attorney 
for said district, or other attorney selected. by the school board, 
for suit ; and provided further, that said notice shall serve as a 
bar to prescription, which shall only begin to run from the 
service of said notice. 

(Attorney's Duty in the Collection of Notes, S. 3, A. 57, '84.) 

It shall be the duty of said attorney to proceed without delay, 
by all necessary legal processes, and without depositing clerk's or 
sheriff 's costs, or giving security therefor, to collect all such notes 
as may be turned over to him by said treasurer of the parish 
school board, and given for sixteenth sections, known as free 
school lands, and if any of the conservatory writs shall be found 
to be necessary in order to aid in said collection, it shall be lawful 
to issue the same, without giving bond as required in other cases. 

(Attorney's Compensation, S. 4, A. 57, 84.) 

The said attorney shall receive ten per cent of all moneys 
collected by him on notes given for sixteenth sections, and after 
deducting said ten per cent he shall turn over the remainder to 
the treasurer of the school fund for the parish in which the lands 
are situated, and the same shall be transmitted through the 
Auditor of Accounts, by said treasurer, to the State Treasurer ; 
and any moneys thus received into the State Treasury from said 
collections shall bear interest at the rate of four per cent per 
annum, and be credited to the township to which the same be- 
longs, according to the provisions of the Act of Congress. 

(When Scrip May Issue, S. 2952, R. S.) 

When such locations cannot be made, if deemed more advan- 
tageous to the State, the Register, with the assent of the Federal 
Government, is authorized to issue scrip for such lands, which 
scrip shall not be sold for a less amount than one dollar and 
twenty-five cents per acre. 



94 

(Duty of the Auditor in Fixing Capital Due the Townships, A. 96, '86.) 

It shall be the duty of the Auditor of Public Accounts by the 
1st day of January, 1887, to ascertain the amount of capital that 
may be due the several townships from the proceeds of the sales 
of sixteenth sections, made since the 1st of January, 1880, 
and actually paid into the State Treasury. The amount thus 
ascertained shall be the capital upon which interest shall there- 
after be allowed and paid out of the interest collected on the 
said bonds to the townships, the sixteenth sections of which have 
been sold since the 1st of January, 1880, and the proceeds 
actually paid into the State Treasury, and the proceeds so paid 
invested as required by law. 

In calculating the interest due the several townships, no in- 
terest shall be allowed for fractions of the year during which 
the receipts shall have come into the treasury; but it shall com- 
mence at the beginning of the first of January of the next year. 

The interest due upon the capital ascertained as aforesaid, 
and the interest due upon subsequent sales, shall be paid to the 
township in the manner now provided for by law. It shall be 
the duty of the Auditor to furnish the Treasurer and Superin- 
tendent of Public Education with a statement of the amount 
due each township. 

(Lake Beds Sold for Account of Schools, A. 124, '02.) 

Section 1. All islands, other than sea marsh islands, belong- 
ing to the State, as well as all other lands of the State, not the 
property of any levee district, nor within the limits of any levee 
district, which were formerly the beds of lakes, or other bodies of 
water, whether navigable or unnavigable, which are now, or may 
hereafter become dry in whole or in part by reason of the reces- 
sion therefrom of the waters which formerly covered the same, be 
and the same are hereby declared to be open to entry and sale for 
account of the State for school purposes as hereinafter provided. 

(Proceeds of Sale of Ail Such Lands, to Be Placed to the Credit of 
General School Fund, A. 124, '02.) 

Section 7. The proceeds arising from the sales of said lands 
shall, when paid into the hands of the State Treasurer, be placed 
by him to the credit of the General School Fund of the State for 



95 

the benefit of the public schools of the State as now provided by 
law; provided that in addition to the price paid the Treasurer 
the purchaser of any of the lands described in this Act shall 
pay to the Register the fees allowed by law. 

(Duty of School Board When Vote Is Against Sale of Lands, S. 1, A. 54, 
'10, amending A. 129, '08, amending S. 2962 of the Revised 
Statutes.) 

Should a majority of the legal voters be against the sale of 
the lands, then it shall be the duty of the parish board of school 
directors of the parish in which said lands are located to secure 
them from injury and waste and to prevent illegal possession or 
aggression of any kind and to lease the same, or any part there- 
of, according to the provisions of the Act of Congress aforesaid 
as amended by Act of Congress approved June 12th, 1884, and 
to inform the State Superintendent thereof. 

(Advertising Lease; Security Required.) 

Such lease shall only be made after due notice shall have been 
given by advertisement, for at least thirty days, in the official 
journal of the parish, or in any paper published regularly in the 
parish containing the land to be leased, of the time and place 
where the land will be offered for lease to the highest bidder. In 
all cases ample security shall be required, not only for the punc- 
tual payment of the rent but for the protection of the lands from 
all kinds of waste and injury. Said parish hoard of school di- 
rectors shall have the right to reject any and all bids offered for 
said lease, if in its judgment the bids do not reach a just and 
fair value of the lease. 

(Manner of Holding Elections on Sale of Timber; Lease of Oil and 
Mineral Rights.) 

The Parish Board of School Directors shall have the author- 
ity, when in its judgment it is to the best interests of the schools 
of a township, to take the sense of the legal voters residing in 
such township relative to the sale of the timber on sixteenth 
section school lands situated therein or the lease or sale of oil 
and mineral rights on such land. Said vote shall be taken under 
the direction of said board, who shall give thirty days' notice 
thereof in the parish journal, or in any paper regularly pub- 



96 



lished in the parish, setting forth the time and place of the elec- 
tion to be held. The said board shall appoint one of its members 
to conduct the election, who shall hold open the polls and allow 
votes to be cast within the usual hours and in the usual manner 
of holding elections. 

(Affirmative Vote to Be Reported to State Superintendent and Auditor 
of Public Accounts.) 

If a majority of the votes cast are in favor of the sale of the 
timber, or the lease or sale of oil and mineral rights, the Parish 
Board of School Directors shall at once report the result of the 
election to the State Superintendent of Public Education and to 
the State Auditor of Public Accounts, and upon the order of the 
State Auditor the said board shall proceed to sell the timber or 
lease or sell the oil and mineral rights, either or both, as the case 
may be, under the same formalities and requirements as provided 
for the lease of sixteenth section school lands hereinabove set 
forth. 

(Notes Made Payable to Auditor of Public Accounts, Secured by at 
Least Two Solvent Sureties in Solido.) 

In all cases where a sale of timber or of oil and mineral rights 
is made under the provisions of this Act and deferred payments 
are allowed, the notes representing such deferred payments shall 
be Made payable to the order of the Auditor of Public Accounts, 
and their punctual payment shall be secured by at least two good 
and solvent sureties, who shall be liable "in solido." 

(Funds Accruing From Lease of Lands, Sale of Timber and Mineral 
and Oil Rights Credited to Current School Fund of Parish.) 

In ail cases of the lease of sixteenth section school lands, or 
of the sale of the timber thereon or of the lease or sale of oil and 
the mineral rights thereof, the cash payment after deducting suf- 
ficient amount to cover the actual expenses incurred by the said 
election and making the said lease or sale, shall be credited to 
the account of the current school fund of the parish where the 
sixteenth section school lands are located, and notes representing 
deferred payments shall be placed in the hands of the parish 
school treasurer for collection, and when collected also credited 
to the current school fund of said parish, to be used for general 
school purposes. 



97 



(Leases or Sales of Timber, Oil and Mineral Rights to Expire Automat- 
ically After Ten Years.) 

In all eases where a sale of timber or the lease of or sale of 
the oil and mineral rights is made under the provisions of this 
Act, the purchaser thereof or his vendees, or the lessee, shall be 
allowed a period of not more than ten years in which to remove 
the timber or to utilize the oil and mjineral rights. 

(Trespass on Sixteenth Section, S. 1, A. 14, '82.) 

Whoever shall cut down, or remove for sale for his own use, 
or the use of another, any timber on any free school land in this 
State, belonging to the State, known as sixteenth section, shall be 
deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction shall be 
condemned to pay a fine of not less than fifty nor more than one 
thousand dollars, and, in default of the same, be sentenced to 
imprisonment not less than ten days nor more than one year. 

(Same, S. 2, A. 14, '82.) 

"Whoever shall knowingly use, cultivate or inclose any free 
school land, known as sixteenth section, without authority from 
the parish board of school directors, shall on conviction be con- 
demned to pay a fine of not less than fifty nor more than one 
thousand dollars, and in default of the same, be sentenced to 
imprisonment for not less than ten days nor more than one year. 

(School Boards Authorized to Sue for Recovery of Damages and Tres- 
pass on Sixteenth Sections, S. 1, A. 158, '10.) 
The several school boards of the various parishes of the State 
be and they are hereby authorized' and empowered to contract 
with and employ on the part of the State of Louisiana, attorneys 
at law, to recover for the State, damages for trespass to the six- 
teenth section known as school lands the title to which is still in 
the State, each of said Boards to have authority to make said con- 
tracts for the lands situated in its own parish and no others ; and 
the several school boards shall also have authority to sue for and 
recover the sixteenth section known as school lands. 

(Compensation of District Attorney and Other Attorneys, S. 2, A. 158, 
'10.) 

The attorney or attorneys thus employed shall work in con- 
junction with the district attorney for the parish in which the 
land is situated; that the compensation of the district attorneys 



98 

shall remain as now fixed by law; that the compensation of the 
other attorney or attorneys employed shall be fixed by contract 
between the respective school boards and the attorney or attor- 
neys employed and shall in each case be a contingent fee, condi- 
tioned upon recovery ; shall in each case be a fixed percentage of 
the amount recovered, and shall in no case exceed twenty-five per 
cent of the amount recovered; provided that if more than one 
attorney is thus employed for the same cause, the same fee shall 
be paid to the whole number of attorneys, as if only one had been 
employed. 

(Manner of Bringing Suits, S. 3, A. 158, MO.) 

Suit in all such cases shall be brought in the name of the State . 
of Louisiana, and the attorneys employed as aforesaid, shall sue 
for the value of all timber cut and removed from any such lands, 
as well as' any and all other legal damages caused by any such 
trespass. 

(Authority Applies to Sixteentii Sections Illegally Acquired.) 

The authority given by this Act shall apply to all sixteenth 
sections donated by Congress to this State in trust for public 
school purposes, and to which the State has never legally parted 
with the title ; and the suits herein authorized may be brought 
against those whio claimed the right to cut and remove timber 
from such lands, under color of title. 

(Residue of Amounts Recovered to Be Paid Into State Treasury.) 

Each and every amount- recovered for the State as herein 
provided shall, after deducting and paying the attorney's fees 
as herein provided, and all other lawful costs and charges, be 
paid into the State Treasury, to be kept on the books of the 
Auditor and Treasurer, to the credit of the township in which 
the land is situated, in the same manner as now provided by 
law for the proceeds of the sale of such sixteenth sections. 

(To Provide for the Sale of School Indemnity Lands, Act 207 of '02.) 

Section 1. That all lands now owned by, or which may here- 
after inure to the State from the United States Government as 
indemnity for school lands, shall be disposed of as hereinafter 
provided. 

Section 2, That the Register of the State Land Office shall 
cause to be advertised for sale at public auction for thirty clear 



99 



days, a list of the lands to be sold, which have not already been 
advertised, the publication to be made in a newspaper published 
in the parish where the land is to be sold is situated, and no land 
to be sold shall be advertised in any paper published outside of 
the parish where the same is situated. 

Section 3. That the Register shall adjudicate said lands at 
public auction to the last and highest bidder at his office and in 
case the land so offered for sale fails to bring at auction the price 
of two dollars and fifty cents ($2.50) per acre the same shall be 
withdrawn and shall be thereafter sold by him at private sale for 
two dollars and fifty cents per acre. 

Section 4. That the Register shall not issue a patent to the 
purchaser of said land until he shall have paid into the hands 
of the State Treasurer the purchase price of said lands. 

Section 5. In addition to the purchase price paid for said 
lands, the purchaser thereof shall pay to the Register the same 
fees, as in other cases where a patent is issued, and out of the 
purchase price so paid, the Treasurer of the State shall pay the 
cost of advertising said property and place the balance thereof to 
the credit of the various school boards entitled to receive same. 

Section 6. The provisions of this Act shall not refer nor 
apply to applications for the entry and sale of school indemnity 
lands which may be pending in the State Land Office at the time 
of the passage of this Act. 

(Sale Which Can Be Made by the Land Register, A. 315, '55.) 

It shall be lawful for the Register of the State Land Office 
to sell, at the price stipulated by law, to any board of free school 
district directors of 'this State, any amount, not less than five 
acres, of any land within their school district, donated by Con- 
gress to this State, either for the use of a seminary of learning, 
or for the purpose of internal improvement, on which to erect 
a schoolhouse. 

(How Located, S. 2947, R. S.) 

Any land so sold shall commence in the corner of a legal 
division or sub-division of sections ; and if in a right angle, it 
shall be run an equal .distance on two sides, bounded by the line 
of such division, and form a square including the number of 
acres sold ; if in an acute angle, it shall be bounded by said 



100 

division lines to such distance, and by lines in such other direc- 
tions as the Register may deem most equitable between the land 
so sold and that retained ; the patents for lands so sold shall issue 
to the free school directors and their successors, for the use of 
their district schools, setting forth the number, and of what 
parish. 

(Reservations of School Lands, A. 316, '55.) 

The Register of the State Land Office is required to ascertain 
in what township in this State there are no reservations of school 
sections by reason of conflicting claims or from any other cause, 
or where the reservation is less than contemplated by law; and 
in such cases it is made his duty under the superintendence of 
the Governor, to apply for, and as soon as possible, obtain a 
location of any land or part of land in lieu thereof. 

(Grants and Reservations.) 

The lands granted in the States and reserved in the Terri- 
tories for educational purposes by Acts of Congress from 1785 
to June 30, 1880, were : 

(For Public or Common Schools.) 

Every sixteenth section of public land in the States admitted 
to 1848, and every sixteenth and thirty-sixth section of such land 
in States and Territories since organized — estimated at 67,893,919 
acres. 

(For Seminaries or Universities.) 

The quantity of two townships, or 46,080 acres, in each State 
or Territory containing public land, and,. in some instances, a 
greater quantity, for the support of seminaries or schools of a 
higher grade — estimated at 1,165,520 acres. 

(For Agricultural and Mechanical Colleges.) 

The grant to all the States for agricultural and mechanical 
colleges, by Act of July 2, 1862, and its supplements of 30,000 
acres, for each Representative and Senator in Congress to which 
the State was entitled, of land ' ' in place ' ' where the State con- 
tained a sufficient quantity of public land subject to sale at ordi- 
nary private entry at the rate of $1.25 per acre, and of scrip 
representing an equal number of acres where the State did not 



101 

contain such description of land, the scrip to be sold by the State 
and located by its assignees on any such land in other States and 
Territories, subject to certain restrictions. Land in place, 1,770,- 
000 acres; land scrip, 7,830,000; total, 9,600,000 acres. 

In all, 78,659,439 acres for educational purposes under the 
heads above set out to June 30, 1880. 

The lands thus ceded to the several States were disposed of 
or are held for disposition, and the proceeds used as permanent 
endowments for common school funds. (See Report of the Com- 
missioner of Education, Hon. John Eaton, to June 30, 1880 ; land 
and auditors' reports for the several land States; Kiddle & 
Schem's Dictionary of Education; and also ninth census, E. A. 
Walker, superintendent, for details of endowments of the several 
States for common schools resulting from the sales of United 
States land grants for education.) As an illustration, the State 
of Ohio has a permanent endowment for education, called the 
' ' Irreducible State Debt, ' ' the result of sale of all granted lands 
for education, of $4,289,718.52. 

(Price of Seminary Lands, S. 2954, R. S.) 

The price of the seminary lands shall hereafter be fixed at 
one dollar and twenty-five cents per acre. 

(Disposition of Funds of Towns ort the Recision of Their Charters, 
S. 6, A. 173, '94.) 
If after paying all the debts of said town (upon the dissolu- 
tion and recision of its charter) there shall remain any balance 
of money, the same shall be turned over to the school board of 
the parish to be used in the education of the children of school 
age residing within the territory covered by said town. 

(Prescription of Debts, etc., S. 8, A. 103, 'SO.) 

The term of prescription of any and all debts, due to any 
charitable institution in this State, and to any college fund, or 
any fund of any institution of learning, or to any fund be- 
queathed for charitable purposes of education, and of all debts 
contracted by borrowing the whole or part of any such funds, 
shall be thirty years ; provided, the debt is evidenced in writing. 

(Free School Fund, S. 2957, R. S.) 

The proceeds of all lands heretofore granted by the United 



102 



States to this State for the use or support of schools except the 
sixteenth section in the various townships of the State specially 
reserved by Congress for the use and benefit of the people there- 
in ; and all lands which may hereafter be granted or bequeathed 
to the State, and not specially granted or bequeathed for any 
other purpose, which hereafter may be disposed of by the State, 
and the ten per cent of the net proceeds of the sales of the public 
land and which have accrued and to accrue to this State under 
the Act of Congress entitled "An Act to appropriate the pro- 
ceeds of the public lands," and to grant pre-emption rights, 
approved September 4, 1841 ; and the proceeds of the estates of 
deceased persons, to which the State has or may become entitled 
by law, shall be held by the State as a loan, and shall be and 
remain a perpetual fund, to be called the Free School Fund, on 
which the- State shall pay an annual interest of six per cent; 
which interest, together with the interest of the Trust Fund 
deposited with this State by the United States, under the Act of 
Congress approved the 23d of June, 1836, with the rents of all 
unsold lands, except that of the sixteenth sections, shall be ap- 
propriated for the support of public schools in this State; and 
donations of all kinds which shall be made for the support of 
schools, and such other means which the Legislature may from 
time to time set apart for school purposes, shall form a part of 
the fund, and shall also be a loan on which the State shall pay 
an interest of six per cent per annum. 

It shall be the duty of the Treasurer of the State to apply 
annually, and to receive from the general Government, the said 
ten per cent of moneys now due and to become due to this State, 
and to place the same, when received, to the credit of the proper 
fund, and to report thereon to each session of the General 
Assembly. 

(Special Sources of Revenue.) 

1. Act 85 of '94. — Residue from sale of unclaimed merchan- 
dise in warehouse. 

2. Act 124 of '90. — Residue from sale of unclaimed freight 
in railroad warehouse. 



103 

3. Act 124 (Sec. 1 and 7) '02.— Proceeds from sale of 
''island other than sea marsh islands." 

4. Sec. S. 2957, R. S. — From "Land Grants" other than the 
sixteenth section. 

5. Acts 39, 177, '02. — From sale of "Internal Improvement" 
Swamp Indemnity Lands and Certificates. 

6. Act 180 of 1902. 

7. All fines and forfeited bonds. 

8. See Act 27, '75. — Fine for violation of laws relative to 
inquests, etc. 

9. Recision of town charters, S. 6, A. 173 of 1894. 

10. Donations. 

11. Fees. 

12. Inheritance tax. 

13. Special school tax. 

THE LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY AND AGRI- 
CULTURAL AND MECHANICAL COLLEGE. 

(Object of the Institution, A. 145, 77.) 

The Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Me- 
chanical College, as hereinafter created, shall have for its object 
to become an institution of learning, in the broadest and highest 
sense, where literature, science and all the arts may be taught; 
where the principles of truth and honor may be established, and 
a noble sense of personal and patriotic and religious duty incul- 
cated; in fine, to fit the citizen to perform justly, skillfully, and 
magnanimously all the offices, both private and public, of peace 
and war. 

(General Instruction, A. 145, 77.) 

The Louisiana State University anad Agricultural and Me- 
chanical College, as hereinbefore created, shall provide general 
instruction and education in all the departments of literature, 
science, art, and industrial and professional pursuits, and it 
shall provide special instruction for the purpose of agriculture, 
the mechanic arts, mining, military science and art, civil engi- 
neering, law, medicine, commerce and navigation. 

Note. — See L. S. U. Catalogue for degrees conferred. 



104 

(Branches to Be Taught, A. 145, '77.) 

There shall be maintained in the Louisiana State University 
and Agricultural and Mechanical College, as hereinbefore con- 
stituted and established: 

First — Schools of literature, including the languages of the 
principal nations of ancient and modern times, philosophy, logic, 
rhetoric and elocution, history, ethics, metaphysics and such 
other and special branches of learning as the board of super- 
visors may determine. 

Second — Schools of science, including mathematics, astron- 
omy, engineering, architecture, drawing, physics, chemistry, bot- 
any, zoology, agriculture, mechanics, mining, navigation and 
commerce and such other special branches of learning as the 
board of supervisors may determine. 

Third^Schools of the useful and fine arts, and of military 
science and art. 

Fourth — Schools of medicine and law. 

Fifth — Such other schools as the board of supervisors may 
establish. 

(Affiliation with Any Incorporated Institution, A. 145, '77.) 

The board of supervisors may affiliate with the Louisiana 
State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College any 
incorporated university or college, or school of medicine, law 
or other special course of instruction, upon such terms as may 
be deemed expedient ; and such university, college or school may 
retain the control of its own property, have its own board of 
trustees, faculties and president respectively; and the students 
of such universities, colleges or schools recommended by the re- 
spective faculties thereof, may receive from the Louisiana State 
University and Agricultural and Mechanical College the degrees 
of those universities, colleges or schools, and the said students of 
learning or special schools, thus graduated, shall rank as grad- 
uates of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and 
Mechanical College. 

(Beneficiary Cadets.) 

Each parish, as now created, or that may hereafter be created 
in the State, shall have the right to delegate to the Louisiana 



105 



State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College one 
beneficiary cadet, and the City of New Orleans shall have the 
right to delegate to said institution seventeen beneficiary cadets ; 
or one from each ward of said city, said beneficiaries to rem'ain at 
said institution four years, unless sooner graduated or otherwise 
discharged ; provided, that no beneficiary cadet shall be permitted 
to resign from said institution, without the consent of the board 
of supervisors thereof, which consent shall be given only in case 
of urgent necessity, such as serious and long protracted ill health, 
duly declared by the certificate of the surgeon of said institution, 
or other competent physician, be of such a nature as to render it 
impossible for said cadet to pursue his studies with advantage. 

(Police Juries and City Councils to Elect Beneficiaries.) 

The police jury of each parish and the city council of New 
Orleans, respectively, may at a regular meeting elect the number 
of beneficiary cadets to which said parish or city is entitled as 
aforesaid, of such age and qualifications as may be prescribed by 
the board of supervisors for admission to the college classes of 
said University and Agricultural and Mechanical College; and 
shall cause the beneficiary so selected to report in person at said 
institution on or before said 5th day of October ; provided, that 
said beneficiary cadet shall be selected from the number of those 
residents of said parish or of said city, who have not themselves 
nor their parents, the means of defraying the whole of their nec- 
essary expenses and maintenance and support of said institution, 
which facts shall be duly certified to the president of said institu- 
tion, by the president of said police jury, or said city council of 
New Orleans, as true, to the best of his knowledge and belief. 

(Authority of the Police Juries, and City Council of New Orleans to 
Appropriate Funds for Beneficiaries.) 

For maintenance and board of said beneficiaries in said insti- 
tution, the police juries of the several parishes and the city 
council of the City of New Orleans, be and are hereby author- 
ized and empowered to appropriate out of their respective treas- 
uries, a sufficient sum to defray the necessary expenses of said 
cadets as appointed under the provisions of this act ; provided, 
that the expense of no cadet shall exceed two hundred and fifty 
dollars ($250) per annum ; provided, that under no circumstances 
shall any part of this sum be paid by the State. 



106 

(Recognition of the Degrees Conferred, A. 93, '08.) 

That all diplomas or degrees, whether literary or scientific, 
academic or professional, granted by the Board of Supervisors 
of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechan- 
ical College upon the recommendation of the faculty of said insti- 
tution shall be recognized by the courts and other officials of 
Louisiana as entitling the graduates holding said diplomas or 
degrees to the same rights, immunities and privileges in the State 
of Louisiana as diplomas or degrees of any other institution of 
learning whatsoever. 

(Benefits of tiie Carnegie Fund Allowed, A, 219, '08.) 

That the Board of Supervisors of the Louisiana State Univer- 
sity and Agricultural and Mechanical College is hereby author- 
ized to accept the offer of the Board of Trustees of the Carnegie 
Foundation to admit State universities to the benefits of the re- 
tiring allowance system of said Foundation. 

(Authority to Charge Tuition Fees, A. 227, '08.) 

That Section 1 of Act No. 152 of 1902, entitled ''An Act 
authorizing the Board of Supervisors of the Louisiana State 
University and Agricultural and Mechanical College to deter- 
mine the fees of students or cadets," shall be amended and re- 
enacted so as to read as follows: 

Section 1, That the Board of Supervisors of the Louisiana 
State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College shall 
have power and authority to determine what fees and other 
charges shall be paid by students or cadets ; provided, that no 
fee for tuition shall be charged to any student or cadet who is 
a bona fide resident of the State of Louisiana unless said student 
or cadet be pursuing a special graduate or professional course 
of study. 

(Establishing a Chair of Forestry, A. 242, '08.) 

That it is hereby made the duty of the Board of Supervisors 
of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechan- 
ical College at Baton Rouge, La., to establish and maintain a 
Chair of Forestry in said University for the purpose of teaching 
the care, protection and conservation of the forests of this State. 



107 



STATE NORMAL SCHOOL. 

(Object; to Whom Open, S. 1, A. 73, '92.) 

(State Normal School, Act 73, '92; A. 61, '86; A. 23, '88; 
A. 70, '02; A. 91, '96; A. 158, '02; A. 51, '84. See Constitu- 
tion, '98.) 

The State Normal School, located at Natchitoches, in the Par- 
ish of Natchitoches, in conformity with Sections 4 and 8 of Act 
No. 51 of 1884, shall have for its object to train teachers for the 
public schools of Louisiana, and shall be open to white persons 
of either sex or age and qualifications as may be hereinafter 
prescribed. 

(Departments and Classes, S. 6, A. 73, '92.) 

The State Normal School shall contain two departments, the 
Normal Department and the Practice School. The course of 
study of the Normal Department may extend over a period of 
four years, and shall embrace thorough instruction and training 
in the history and science of education, the theory and practice 
of teaching, the organization and government of schools and such 
other branches of knowledge as mjay be deemed necessary to fit 
the students for the varied work of a complete system of public 
schools. The Practice School shall consist of such grades or 
classes, with such course of study, as the Board of Administra- 
tors may deem useful in giving the Normal students the neces- 
sary practice in the art of teaching. 

(Qualifications for Admission, S. 7, A. 73, '92.) 

Applicants for admission to the Normal Department must be 
at least fifteen years of age if female, and sixteen years of age if 
male ; must give satisfactory evidence of good m,oral character 
and requisite proficiency in the ordinary branches of a good 
common school education ; and must declare in writing their full 
intention of continuing in the school until graduation, unless 
sooner discharged, and of teaching in the public schools of Louis- 
iana for at least one year after graduation. 

(Tuition Free, Except in Some Instances, S. 8, A. 73, '92.) 

Tuition shall be free to all students of the Normal Depart- 
ment who fulfill all the requirements imposed by Section 7 of 
this Act, and to the pupils of the primary grades of the Practice 



108 



School. All other students shall be charged such fees for tuition 
as may be prescribed by the board of administrators. 

(Beneficiary Students to State Sclnools, A, 158, '02.) 

Each police jury of the several parishes of the State shall 
have the right to delegate to the Louisiana Industrial Institute 
at Ruston, or the Southwestern Louisiana Industrial Institute 
at Lafayette, or the State Normal School, one female student, 
and the City of New Orleans shall have the right to delegate 
to said institutions one female student from each ward of said 
city, said beneficiaries to remain at said institutions until grad- 
uated or otherwise discharged; provided no beneficiary shall be 
permitted to resign without the consent of the board of super- 
visors of the institute, which consent shall be given only in case 
of urgent necessity, such as serious or long protracted ill health, 
duly declared by certificate of the physician of such institute or 
other competent physician, to be of such nature as to render it 
impossible for said student to pursue her studies with advantage. 

Section 2. That the police jury of each parish and the city 
council of New Orleans, respectively, may at a regular meeting 
select said beneficiaries subject to and after competitive examina- 
tion and of such age and qualifications as is prescribed by the 
rules of such institutions; provided said beneficiaries shall be 
residents of such parish or wards who have not themselves nor 
have their parents the means of defraying the whole of the neces- 
sary expenses of maintenance and support at said institute, 
which fact shall be duly certified to by the president of the police 
jury of said city. 

Section 3. That for the maintenance and board of said bene- 
ficiaries at said institutes, the police jury of the several parishes 
and the city council of New Orleans be, and are hereby, author- 
ized and empowered to appropriate out of their respective treas- 
uries a sufficient sum to defray the necessary expenses of said' 
students as appointed under provisions of this act; provided 
the expense of no beneficiary shall exceed two hundred and fifty 
dollars ('$250) per annura, 

(State Normal School Diplomas, A. 91, '96.) 

The Board of Administrators of the State Normal School is 
hereby empowered to confer diplomas upon all graduates of 



109 



said school. This diploma shall entitle the holder to a first grade 
teacher's certificate without examination, and shall he valid in- 
any part of the State for four years from the date of gradua- 
tion, after the expiration of which time it may be renewed every 
four years, for the same period, by said Board of Administrators 
upon satisfactory evidence of the ability, progress and moral 
character of the teacher making application for such renewal. 
Furthermore, the diploma of the State Normal School shall en- 
title its holder to such degree of preference in the selection of 
teachers for the public schools of the State as may be deemed 
wise and expedient by the State Board of Education. 

LOUISIANA INDUSTRIAL INSTITUTE. 

(Object; Location; Privilege, A. 68, '94.) 

(Louisiana Industrial Institute, Act 68, '94 ; A. 158, '02. See 
Constitution, '98.) 

An Industrial Institute and College is hereby established for 
the education of the white children of the State of Louisiana in 
the arts and sciences. Said Institute shall be known as "The 
Industrial Institute and College of Louisiana," and shall be 
located at Huston, Lincoln Parish, La., provided said town and 
parish shall donate ten thousand dollars ($10,000) to said Insti- 
tute, and the same shall be organized as hereinafter provided. 
(See Constitution '98.) 

(Branches to Be Taugiit, A. 68, '94.) 

The said board of trustees shall possess all the power neces- 
sary and proper for the accomplishment of the trust reposed in 
them, viz : The establishment of a first-class Industrial Institute 
and College for the education of the white children of Louisiana 
in the arts and sciences, at which such children may acquire a 
thorough academic and literary education, together with a knowl- 
edge of kindergarten instruction, of telegraphy, stenography and 
photography, of drawing, painting, designing and engraving in 
their industrial application ; also a knowledge of fancy, practical 
and general needle work ; also a knowledge of bookkeeping and 
agricultural and mechanical arts, together with such other prac- 
tical industries as from time to time may be suggested to them 
by experience, or such as will tend to promote the general objects 



110 

of said Institute and College, to-wit: Fitting and preparing 
such eliildren, male and female, for the practical industries of 
the age. 

SOUTHWESTERN LOUISIANA INDUSTRIAL 
INSTITUTE. 

(Object; Location, etc.) 

(Southwestern Louisiana Industrial Institute, A. 162, '98; 
A. 158, '02.) 

A State Industrial Institute is hereby established for the 
education of the white children of the State of Louisiana in the 
arts and sciences. 

Said Institute shall be known as the "Southwestern Louisiana. 
Industrial Institute," and shall be located in that parish of the 
13th Senatorial District which will offer the best inducement 
therefor to the Board of Trustees, said location to be made by 
the Board to be appointed under this Act, provided that the 
parish selected for the location of said Institution shall donate 
not less than twenty-five acres of land and five thousand dollars 
to said Institution, and the same shall be organized as herein- 
after provided; provided further, that in case two or more of 
said parishes offer the same inducements then the Board of 
Trustees shall select, by majority vote, the most suitable loca- 
tion and make report thereof to the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, at its next session, together with such recom- 
mendation as may be conducive to the best interests of said 
institution. 

(Branches Taught, etc.) 

The Board of Trustees shall possess all the powers necessary 
and proper for the accomplishment of the trust reposed in them, 
viz : The establishment of a first-class Industrial Institute for the 
education of the white children of Louisiana in the arts and 
sciences, at which such children may acquire a thorough academic 
and literary education, together with a knowledge of kinder- 
garten instruction, of telegraphy, stenography and photography 
or drawing, painting, designing and engraving in their industrial 
applications; also a knowledge of fancy, practical and general 
needle-work; also a knowledge of bookkeeping and agricultural 



Ill 

and mechanical art, together with such other practical industries 
as from time to time may be suggested to them by experience, or 
such as will tend to promote the general object of said Institute, 
viz : Fitting and preparing such children, male and female, for 
practical industries of life. 

LOUISIANA STATE SCHOOL FOR THE BLIND. 

(Louisiana State School for the Blind, A. 92, '71 ; A. 49, '88 ; 
A. 145, '98, amended by A. 238, '08 ; A. 166, '98 ; A. 196, '02.) 

There shall be established and maintained, in the town of 
Baton Eouge, an institution for the education of the blind, to be 
known as the ' ' Louisiana State School for the Blind. ' ' 

(Object of the Institution.) 

They shall receive, instruct and support in the Institution 
all persons blind, or of such defective vision as not to be able 
to acquire an education in the ordinary schools, between the 
ages of seven and twenty-two years, of sound mind and proper 
healthy body, and residents of the State. Such persons shall 
receive instructions and be provided with board, lodging, medi- 
cine and medical attendance at the expense of the institution 
and if in such indigent circumstances as to render it necessary, 
shall also be furnished with clothing and traveling expenses to 
and from the Institution upon a certificate to that effect from 
the president of the police jury of the parish, or the mayor of 
the city or town, in which they reside. 

(How Long Pupils May Remain.) 

Persons admitted as pupils under fourteen years of age may 
continue in the institution ten years ; if over fourteen and under 
seventeen years of age, they may continue eight years; and if 
over seventeen years of age, they may continue five years ; pro- 
vided the board may in any case extend the term two years. 

LOUISIANA STATE SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF. 

(Louisiana State School for the Deaf, A. 88, '71 ; A. 166, '98, 
amended by Act 239, '08; A. 196, '02. See Constitution '98.) 

The institution heretofore known as the Louisiana Institution 
for the Deaf and Dumb and the Blind, located at Baton Eouge, 
in this State, be and the same is hereby reorganized by the pro- 



112 



visions of this act for the exclusive benefit of the deaf and dumb. 

That there shall be established and maintained, in the town of 

Baton Eouge, an institution for the education of the deaf and 

dumb, to be known as the "Louisiana State School for the Deaf." 

(Admission of Pupils, A. 166, '98.) 

They shall receive, instruct and support in the institution all 
persons deaf and dumb, or of such defective speech or hearing as 
not to be able to acquire an education in the ordinary schools, 
between the ages of eight and twenty-two years, of sound mind 
and proper health and body, and residents of the State. Such 
persons shall receive instruction and be provided with board, 
lodging, medicine and medical attendance at the expense of the 
institution, and if in such indigent circumstances as to render 
it necessary, shall also be furnished with clothing and traveling 
expenses to and from the Institution, upon a certificate to that 
effect from the president of the Police Jury of the parish, or 
the mayor of the city, or town, in which they reside. 

(Age of Admission.) 

The persons admitted as pupils under fourteen years of age 
may continue in the institution ten years; if over fourteen and 
under seventeen years of age, they may continue eight years; 
if over seventeen years of age, they may continue five years; 
provided, the board may in any case extend the term two years. 

(Branches Taught.) 

The institution shall provide all the requisite facilities for 
acquiring a good literary education, instruction in hygiene and 
physical culture and an industrial department in which instruc- 
tion shall be given in such trades as may be best suited to render 
the pupils self-sustaining citizens. 

DECISIONS OF SUPREME COURT. 

(Substance of the Supreme Court Decision Relative to Limitation 
Placed by the Constitution on Bond Issues for Public Improve- 
ments.) 

The Constitution limits a bond issue for public improvements 
to ten per cent of the assessment of the district voting the bond 
issue; and the Supreme Court has recently ruled that "the as- 



113 



sessment" has reference to the last assessment as fixed by the 
assessor and police jury. To illustrate : the cash assessment of 
district A is a million dollars. The police jury fixes seventy per 
cent of the cash value as the basis for taxation purposes. The 
assessment for district A is, therefore, $700,000.00, and the dis- 
trict can vote a bond issue of $70,000.00 for a school building. 
If the cash value is taken as the assessment, it can vote 
$100,000.00 for a school building, and a like amount for any 
other public improvement authorized by law. 

(Discipline.) 

Moderate restraint and correction of a pupil by a teacher is 
not an offense, but is authorized by law, and the authority of 
the teacher is not limited to the time the pupil is at the school- 
room or under the actual control of the teacher. (Bolding vs. 
Texas, 4 S. W., 579.) 

"The teacher is loco parentis, and authority is necessarily 
surrendered to him for proper government of the school." (Mor- 
row vs. Wood, American Law Register, N. S. X. 3, 692.) 

Relative to punishment, the calm and honest judgment of the 
teacher, as to the requirement, should have great weight in mat- 
ters of discipline as in the case of a parent under similar circum- 
stances. (American Law Register, Van Vacter vs. State; July 
number, 1888. Discipline in School.) 

It is the duty of a teacher to maintain proper discipline in 
school, and the extent of his authority in that direction is dis- 
cussed. (Law Register, N. S. Vol. XIII, p. 716.) 

(District Attorneys' Not Entitled to 20 Per Cent Commission on Fines.) 

Syllabus : Whilst it is well settled that repeals by implication 
are not favored, it is equally well settled that, in determining 
whether one law conflicts with another, it is necessary to con- 
sider the purposes of both, and if it appears that the purpose of 
the law last enacted is to cover the whole subject matter dealt 
with by and to modify or supercede those previously enacted, 
their modification or supercession results and must be declared. 

2. The purpose of Act No. 96 of 1880 was to deal with the 
whole subject of the duties and compensation of district attor- 
neys, and whilst there may have been some provisions of the 
then existing law which escaped its operation, it so modified and 



114 



superceded that law as to preclude any recovery by the district 
attorneys of the one-fifth part of the fines imposed, after deduct- 
ing the commission of the sheriff, in addition to the fee provided 
by section 3 of said act. 

3. Articles 125 and 180 of the Constitution, whether taken 
separately or tog'ether, are not susceptible of the construction 
that they intend to allow district attorneys to collect commis- 
sions, as contradistinguished from fee, or fees, save as provided 
for by the Constitution itself. 

It is therefore ordered, adjudged and decreed, that the judg- 
ment of the Court of Appeal which is here made the subject of 
review be annulled; that the judgment of the District Court, 
which was thereby affirmed, be likewise annulled, avoided and 
reversed, and. that relator's demand be rejected and this pro- 
ceeding dismissed at his cost. (State ex rel. Edwin Broussard, 
District Attorney, vs. George Henderson, Sheriff, 120 Ann. 535.) 

(Taxes Collected for School Purposes Must Be Turned Over to School 
Board.) 

Taxes collected for school purposes should be turned over to 
the school board from time to time as received. (Parish Board 
of School Directors of Iberia Parish vs. Police Jury of Iberia 
Parish, 123d Ann., 416.) 

(Property Exempt from Taxation by Constitution Also Exempt from 
Special School Tax.) 

The special school tax authorized by Constitution Art. 232, 
is not a special assessment, and property exempt from taxation 
by the Constitution is not subject to it. (Louisiana & N. W. 
R. R. Co. vs. State Board of Appraisers, 120th Ann., 471.) 

(Members of Partnership Entitled to Vote Upon Firm's Assessment in 
Special Tax Election.) 

Individual members of a partnership held entitled to vote 
upon the firm's assessment in a special tax election held under 
Constitution Art. 232. (Smith vs. Parish Board of School Di- 
rectors, 125th Ann., 987.) 

(Persons Not Entitled to Vote Upon Assessment of Property Sold.) 

A person appearing as owner of property on the assessment 
rolls, but who has sold it when an election was held under Con- 



115 

stitution Art. 232, held not entitled to vote thereat. (Smith vs 
Parish Board of School Directors, 125th Ann., 987.) 

(Special Tax Not Set Aside by Legal Votes Cast Without Proper Evi- 
dence.) 

A special tax election under Constitution Art. 232, held not 
to be set aside because the commissioner of election received votes 
without proper evidence, where such votes were legal. (Smith 
vs. Parish Board of School Directors, 125th Ann., 987.) 

(Right of Widows to Vote Community Property.) 

To entitle widows to vote at a special tax election held under 
Constitution Art. 232, as owners of community property, their 
rights must clearly appear by judgment or order of court. 
(Smith vs. Parish Board of School Directors, 125th Ann., 987.) 

(School Houses, as Such, Built by Means of Special Tax, Can Not Be 
Converted Into Theatre.) 

Citizens who have voted to tax themselves for a specific work 
of public improvement, the value of which is fixed at $20,000, 
have a standing in court to complain that the property acquired 
is not being used for the purpose contemplated, and this court, 
in such case, has jurisdiction of the appeal. Where a vote has 
been taken upon a proposition to impose a tax to build a school- 
house, and has been favorably acted on, and a building has been 
constructed with the proceeds of bonds predicated upon such a 
tax. it would be a breach of faith to allow such building to be 
converted into a theatre, or to be used for the purpose of giving 
theatrical performances, as a business, whether in combination 
with its use for school purposes or otherwise. It is, however, 
within the discretion of the municipal authorities having control 
of tlie property to make such casual and incidental use of it as 
may not be inconsistent with or prejudicial to, the main purpose 
for which it was acquired ; and changed conditions, in the future, 
may justify its use for some other purpose. (Sugar vs. City of 
Monroe, 108th Ann., 677.) 



116 



SANITARY REGULATIONS OF THE LOUISIANA STATE 

BOARD OF HEALTH, CONCERNING HYGIENE 

AND SANITATION OF SCHOOLS. 

Sanitary Code, State of Louisiana, Section 250. 

Note. — By Act 192 of 1898 the State Board of Health is authorized to 
enact regulations which are binding upon the public. 

Parish Board and Superintendent to Enforce Rules and Regulations.) 

The parish or municipal school board, and the parish super- 
intendent of schools, shall be held responsible for the execution 
and enforcement of the following rules and regulations, and all 
other health laws governing the hygiene of the schoolroom and 
the premises of the schools under their respective jurisdictions. 

(Plans for Schoolhouses to Be Submitted to State Superintendent, Par- 
ish Superintendent and Parish Health Officer.) 

Plans and specifications for every schoolhouse hereafter 
erected in the State must be submitted to the parish superin- 
tendent of schools, and to the State Superintendent of Educa- 
tion, and also to the parish health officer, that it may be deter- 
mined whether every hygienic or necessarj^ provision is made, 
especially with reference to ventilation, light and protection 
against fire. 

(School House Floor Dressing to Be Used.) 

Section 122 (par. e), revised January 18, 1915: 
"The fioors of every school must be treated with some anti- 
septic floor dressing. Applications to be made at sufficient in- 
tervals to keep down effectually the dust ; floors to be scrubbed 
thoroughly before application. Manufacturers and dealers in 
submitting floor dressings for use in schools must give to the 
State Board of Health satisfactory evidence from reputable 
bacteriologists, together with a guarantee, that the materials are 
efficient. " 

(Governing the Treatment and Sweeping of Floors and Wiping of Fur- 
niture, etc.) 

The floors of every school must be swept daily, sweeping to 
be done after all pupils have left the building. All windows 
must be thrown open and schoolhouse thoroughly aired after 
cleaning. 

All desks, wainscoting, window sills and baseboards in every 



117 



schoollioiise in the State must be wiped off daily with a cloth 
moistened with 1-2000 bichloride of mercury, or 3 per cent car- 
bolic acid solution. 

(Regulating Ventilation and Light.) 

Every schoolhouse, public or private, or other building used 
for school purposes, shall be ventilated in such manner as to 
afford eighteen hundred cubic feet of air per hour for each 
adult, and a proportionate amount for each child, and shall 
contain not less than two hundred cubic feet of air space for 
each child to be taught therein. Windows and transoms shall 
be so constructed that windows may be lowered from the top 
and transoms opened. Every schoolhouse must be lighted in 
such a manner as to minimize the eye strain. Each room must 
contain of actual surface of glass in the windows not less than 
one-seventh of the floor space. 

(Regulating the Swinging of Doors.) 

All doors execept those which slide into wall pockets shall 
open outward and all partition doors shall be hung on double- 
action hinges. 

(Spitting on Floors Strictly Prohibited.) 

Spitting on floors, walls, etc., must be strictly prohibited and 
anti-spitting placards placed in every room. 

(Teachers Must Furnish Health Certificates.) 

No person suffering from any communicable disease shall be 
employed as teacher or janitor in any public school in this State. 
At the opening of each annual term teachers must furnish a 
health certificate from a registered physician, addressed to the 
parish superintendent of schools, certifying that they are not 
suffering from tuberculosis or other communicable disease. 

(Vaccination Required of Pupils.) 

No one shall be entered as a pupil in the public schools of 
this State without first having presented to the principal in 
charge a certificate from a registered physician of Louisiana, 
certifying that within the preceding five years the applicant was 
successfully vaccinated. 

Three unsuccessful attempts at vaccination with a proven 
virus shall be accepted as an immunity of one year. 



118 

Pupils are required, at the end of each five years, to renew 
their vaccination certificates. 

(Pupils Suffering with Communicable Diseases to Be Excluded.) 

No pupil suffering from any communicable disease shall be 
permitted to attend the public schools of this State. The prin- 
cipal or the teacher has the right to exclude any child from the 
schools whom they suspect of suffering from any communicable 
disease, pending examination and report of a registered physi- 
cian. 

(School Houses to Be Disinfected.) 

All schoolrooms in the State must be disinfected before the be- 
ginning of each school session with the formaldehyde-permangan- 
ate of potash mixture as indicated in the bulletin of disinfection. 

(On Appearance of Communicable Diseases, Schools Must Be Closed.) 
On the appearance in a school of any communicable disease, 
either among the pupils, teachers or attendants, the school shall 
be closed immediately and fumigated before reopening. 

(School Premises Shall Be Drained.) 

The school premises shall be thoroughly drained and no stag- 
nant water permitted to collect. In towns with a drainage system 
or where an outflow is possible, the school site and the entire area 
of the ground shall be properly drained, so as to reduce the 
ground water level, and the drainage effected in such a manner as 
not to contaminate with its effluvia any well, cistern or other 
source of drinking water. 

(Abundant Supply of Pure Drinking Water.) 

Every school must be supplied with an abundance of pure 
drinking water for drinking purposes. Where water is used 
from surface wells, said wells must be located at least 100 feet 
from any closet. 

(Open Receptacles for Water and Common Cups Prohibited.) 

The use of open receptacles for drinking water in schools, 
and also of dippers or cups for common drinking purposes, is 
prohibited. The school authorities must supply for holding 
drinking water covered containers with faucets, which contain- 
ers must be scoured daily when in use. All teachers and pupils 



119 



must provide themselves with individual drinking cups or glasses. 
In towns or cities where there is a public water supply a sanitary 
drinking fountain shall be installed. 

(Garbage Can Required; Emptied Daily.) 

Every school in this State must have a sufficient number of 
trash or garbage cans for the convenience of the pupils, teachers 
and employees, and said trash or garbage cans must be kept 
closed, and emptied daily. 

(Lectures for State Institutions and Teachers' Institutes.) 

The State Board of Health will, when desired by the State 
institutions of learning, or the State pedagogical institute, or 
the agricultural institutes, send a lecturer to deliver a series of 
lectures on: 

1. Personal hygiene. 

2. School hygiene. 

3. Principles and practice of physical training. 

4. Drug and alcohol addictions. 

5. Contagious and infectious diseases ; cause and prevention. 

6. Hygiene of the 'home and farm. 

(Parish Superintendents' Monthly Report to State Board of Health.) 

The principal of each school in the State, except in cities 
where there is employed a regular medical inspector, shall make 
a monthly report to the parish superintendent of schools on the 
sanitary condition of the school building and surroundings, also 
the physical condition of the school children. Blank reports for 
this purpose will be furnished by the Louisiana State Board of 
Health. Parish superintendents of schools shall forward these 
reports to the Louisiana State Board of Health within ten days 
after their receipt by him. 

ACT No. 81 (1918.) 

An Act to amend and re-enact Section 1 of Act No. 17 of the 
G-eneral Assembly of 1914 entitled an Act "Authorizing 
Parish Boards of School Directors to create at any time 
school districts to be composed of an entire parish, a ward, 
two or more wards, parts of two or more existing districts, or 
any portion of a parish, and authorizing parish boards of 



120 

school directors exclusively to order, hold and conduct special 
elections in school districts so created or any school district 
for the purpose of raising funds to aid the public schools 
or for authority to issue school bonds for the purpose of se- 
curing funds for erecting and equipping school buildings." 
Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, That Section 1 of Act 17 of the General As- 
sembly of 1914, be amended and re-enacted so as to read as fol- 
lows : That a Parish Board of School Directors as the governing 
body shall have authority to create at any time School Districts 
and sub-school districts composed of an entire parish, a ward, two 
or more wards, parts of two or more wards, part of an existing 
school district, parts of two or more existing school districts, or 
any other portion of a parish ; and the parish board of school 
directors shall have exclusive authority to order, hold and con- 
duct in any school district so created and named or any school 
district already created special elections for the purpose of rais- 
ing additional funds in aid of the public schools, or to be author- 
ized to issue school bonds for the purpose of securing funds to be 
used in erecting and equipping school buildings, said elections 
to be held under the provisions of the Constitution of the State 
of Louisiana and all laws governing such elections. 

ACT No. 44 OF 1914. 

Section 1. Whenever any school land or lands, or school 
section or sections, are located within the boundaries of any 
game, fish or bird preserve or propagating ground or nesting 
place, whether public or private, established or designated, or 
which may be hereafter established or designated as such by the 
Conservation Commission, by and with the consent of the Parish 
Board of School Directors, or under its authority, or whenever 
any school land or lands, or school section or sections, are imme- 
diately contiguous or adjoining any such game, fish or bird pre- 
serve or propagating ground or nesting place, it shall be un- 
lawful for any person to kill, snare or pursue with intent to take 
or kill by any means, or to have in possession any wild animal 
or bird from or upon any such school land or lands, or school 
section or sections. 



121 



The killing or pursuing with intent to kill, snare or take, or 
the having in possession of each wild animal or bird on any such 
school land or lands, or school section or sections, shall constitute 
a separate offense. 

This section shall not prohibit the Conservation Commission 
from killing or having killed, any wolves, wildcats or other ob- 
noxious animals on any such scJiool land or lands, or school sec- 
tion or sections, or from having caught or ensnared any wild 
animals or birds on such school land or lands, or school section 
or sections, for the purpose of propagation, re-stocking, educa- 
tional purposes or scientific investigation. 

Section 2. A person who violates any provision of this Act 
shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be subject to a fine of 
not less than Five and 00/100 ($5.00) Dollars, nor more than 
One Hundred and 00/100 ($100.00) Dollars, with costs of suit, 
for each offense or trespass, to be imposed by any Court of com- 
petent jurisdiction. 

ACT No. 55 OF 1914. 

Section 1. The Boards of School Directors of the Parishes, of 
the State, and Mayors and Boards of Aldermen or Councils or 
Commissioners of the cities, towns and villages of the State are 
hereby authorized and empowered to appropriate, from time to 
time, sums of money, not exceeding one-third of the fines and 
forfeitures derived from unlawful sale or keeping for sale of 
intoxicating liquors, which are collected and paid over to them 
respectively, during the calendar year immediately preceding 
that in which the appropriation is made, for the purpose of pro- 
curing evidence of the violations of the statutes or ordinances, as 
the case may be, against the unlawful sale or keeping for sale of 
intoxicating liquors. 

Section 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from 
and after its passage. 

ACT No. 27 OF 1916. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the G-eneral Assembly of the State 
of Louisiana, That from and after September the first, 1916, 
every parent, guardian, or other person residing within the State 



122 



of Louisiana, having control or charge of any child or children 
between the ages of seven and fourteen years, both inclusive, 
shall send such child or children to a public or private day school 
under such penalty for non-compliance herewith as is hereinafter 
provided. ' 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., That the minimum 
session of attendance required under this Act shall be one hun- 
dred forty days, or for the full session of the public schools where 
the public school session is one hundred forty days or less, and 
children shall be required to enter school not later than two 
weeks after the opening of the session or term. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc., That the following 
classes of children between the ages of seven and fourteen years 
shall be exempted from the provisions of this Act, the Parish 
School Board to be the sole judge in all such cases: (a) Children 
mentally or physically incapacitated to perform school duties ; 
(b) Children who have completed the elementary course of 
study ; (c) Children living more than two and one-half miles from 
a school of suitable grade and for whom free transportation is not 
furnished by the School Board; (d) Children for whom adequate 
school facilities have not been provided; (e) Children whose serv- 
ices are needed to support widowed mothers. 

Section 4. Be it further enacted, etc., That all cases of viola- 
tion of the foregoing provisions by any parent, guardian, or other 
person having control of children, shall be tried in the proper 
courts having jurisdiction, and the penalty for every violation of 
any of said provisions shall be a fine not exceeding ten dollars, 
or not exceeding ten days in jail, or both, at the discretion of the 
Court. 

Section 5. Be it further enacted, etc.. That all cases of non- 
attendance of children at schools, as above required, which is not 
due to the fault of the parent, guardian or ather person having 
control of such children, on account of failure to comply with the 
foregoing provisions, but is due to truancy on the part of the 
child or children shall be considered as delinquency and such 
child or children shall be reported to the Juvenile Court as de- 
linquent children, there to be dealt with in such manner as the 
Judge of said court may determine, either by placing said delin- 
quents in a public or private asylum, home or other public institu- 



123 



tion, where schooling may be provided for said ehiftlren, or other- 
wise. 

Section 6. Be it further enacted, etc., That truancy as herein 
used is defined to be absence from school for more than one week 
without cause. 

Section 7. Be it further enacted, etc., That parish school 
boards shall have authority to furnish textbooks free to children 
whose parents or guardians are unable to provide same. 

Section 8. Be it further enacted, etc.. That all laws or parts 
of laws in conflict with the provisions of this Act be and the 
same are hereby repealed. 

ACT No. 72 OF 1916. 

Resolved: By the House of Representatives, the Senate con- 
curring : That the Governor of the State be and is hereby em- 
powered and authorized to name a commission of Five residents 
of the State of Louisiana, to take into consideration the feasibility 
and the advisability of establishing an institution for the care 
and training of the Deaf, Dumb and Blind of the Negro Race 
of the State of Louisiana. 

Be it further resolved : That this commission shall serve with- 
out pay or compensation whatever from the State, and it shall 
report to the next session of the General Assembly such recom- 
mendations as to the location, cost and working plan of such 
institution as may seem wise and proper, in case it shall be 
determined to establish such an institution. 

ACT No. 91 OF 1916. 

Section 1. Be it resolved by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, two-thirds of all the members elected to each 
ihouse concurring, that Article 210 of the Constitution be amend- 
ed so as to read as follows : 

Article 210 : No person shall be ^igible to any office, State, 
Judicial, Parochial, municipal or ward, who is not a citizen of 
this State, and a duly qualified elector of the State, Judicial Dis- 
trict, municipality or ward; wherein the functions of the said 
office are to be performed; provided, that resident women over 



124 

the age of twenty-one years shall be eligible to hold the office 
of Factory Inspector and any office connected with the educa- 
tional, eleemosynary, penal and correctional systems of the State, 
Parish, Ward, municipality, or any other political division of the 
State. And whenever any officer, State, Judicial, Parochial, mu- 
nicipal, or ward, may change his or her residence from this State, 
or from the district, parish, municipality or ward in which he 
or she holds such office, the same shall thereby be vacated any 
declaration of retention of domicile to the contrary notwith- 
standing. 

Section 2. Be it further resolved, etc., That this proposed 
amendment be submitted to the electors of the State of Louisiana 
for their approval or rejection, as required by Article 231 of the 
Constitution of the State of Louisiana and the general election 
laws of this State in November, 1916. 

Section 3. Be it further resolved, etc., That on the official 
ballot to be used at the said election shall be placed the words 
"For the proposed amendment to Article 210 of the Constitution 
relative to women," and the words "Against the proposed 
amendment to Article 210 of the Constitution relative to 
women," and each elector shall indicate, as provided in the 
general election laws of the State whether he votes for or against 
the said amendment. 

ACT No. 120 OF 1916. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State 
of Louisiana, That there shall be a State Board of Education of 
six members, five appointed at large by the Governor and not 
subject to removal by the Governor. The Governor, in providing 
for the first State Board of Education under this Act, shall 
appoint one member for a term of five years, one for four years, 
one for three years, one for two years, and one for one yea,r. The 
sixth member shall be the State Superintendent of Public Edu- 
cation. After the first Boa^rd all members of the State Board of 
Education shall be appointed for terms of five years. The State 
Board of Education shall be a body politic, and Corporate by the 
name and style of the Louisiana State Board of Education, with 
authority to sue and defend suits in all matters relating to the 



125 



public schools not within the jurisdiction of the parish school 
boards, as hereinafter provided. The appointive members of the 
Board shall receive as compensation for their service in attending 
meetings of the Board, their actual traveling expenses and per 
diem for the number of days that the Board is in session, the 
same as members of the State Legislature, payable on their 
warrants, approved by the President and Secretary of the Board, 
out of the current school fund. The Governor shall fill by ap- 
pointment all vacancies on the Board. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., That the Board shall 
elect from its membership a President and a Vice President, 
whose terms of office shall be fixed by the Board, not to exceed 
five years. The State Superintendent shall be Secretary of the 
Board. The Board shall meet on or before the first Monday in 
December of each year, and at other times when called by the 
President. The acts of the Board shall be attested by the signa- 
ture of the President and Secretary of the Board. All papers, 
documents and records appertaining to the Board shall be filed 
by the Secretary of the Board in the office of the State Superin- 
tendent of Public Education. The Board may direct that the 
proceedings of the State Board of Education be published in the 
official journal of the State or in an official pamphlet. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc., That the State Board 
of Education shall prepare rules, by-laws and regulations for 
the government of the public schools of the State, which shall 
be enforced by the parish superintendents and the several parish 
school boards, and shall give such directions as it may deem 
proper as to the branches of study which shall be taught. 

The State Board of Education shall strictly enforce a uni- 
formity of textbooks in all of the public schools of the State, 
and shall adopt a list thereof, whjch shall remain unchanged for 
six years after such adoption. Not more than three subjects or 
parts of subjects of the elementary grades and not more than 
two of the following high school subjects can be changed at any 
one adoption, to- wit: Algebra, English Grammar, Composition 
and Rhetoric, Botany, Zoology, Chemistry, Geometry, American 
History, Ancient History, Mediaeval and Modern History, and of 
the remaining high school subjects, not more than five can be 



126 



changed at any adoption, provided that any textbook used in the 
schools of this State may be changed at any time upon the written 
application of forty parish school boards, as per resolution of 
said boards duly certified to the State Board of Education. 

All contracts for the adoption of textbooks for use in the 
public schools shall cover a period of six years. The adoption of 
elementary textbooks and high school books shall be made at 
periods three years apart. The mode of procedure for the an- 
nouncement of bids, awarding of contracts, location of deposi- 
tories for the distribution of school textbooks and all other mat- 
ters connected with the adoption and distribution of textbooks 
shall be left to the State Board of Education. 

Section 4. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the State Board 
of Education may require reports to be made by the Parish 
superintendent and teachers whenever the interests of the pub- 
lic schools indicate the necessity of other reports than are now 
required. 

Section 5. Be it further enacted, etc.. That there shall be 
elected by the qualified voters of each police .jury ward of the 
several parishes of the State a member of the school board of 
such parish for each police juror in said ward, whose term of 
office shall be for a period of six (6) years. The first election 
above provided for the purpose of electing successors to such 
members of the school boards of the several parishes whose 
terms expire shall take place at the same time as the congres- 
sional election in 1916. The parish school board members now 
in office shall serve out the terms for which they were elected. 
All vacancies in the parish school boards caused by death or 
otherwise shall be filled by a special election called for that 
purpose in such ward where the vacancy occurs, provided that 
all unexpired terms of less than two years shall be filled by 
appointment by the Governor. The successors of the school 
board members now in office shall be elected at the congressional 
elections. The parish school boards of the several parishes, as 
occasion may arise on account of the increase in the membership 
by the creation of additional wards or the increase of member- 
ship for any single ward, shall by proper resolution maintain the 
three divisions of the membership of said boards now existing as 



127 



nearly equal as possible by alloting such new members to one of 
the three divisions, and when so alloted the term of office of such 
new member or members shall expire at the same time that the 
terms of office of the other members of the said division expire. 
The compensation of each member of the school board is hereby 
fixed at three dollars ($3.00) for each day that he may attend 
the meetings of said board, and five cents a mile that he may 
travel to and from the meetings of the board. The members of 
the parish school boards shall have authority to appoint froin 
their membership an executive committee of three members, 
which committee shall be charged with such duties as may be 
delegated to it by the parish school board. The members of the 
executive committee shall receive the same compensation for 
their services when attending committee meetings as they receive 
when attending meetings of the board, provided that they shall 
not receive compensation for attending more than one committee 
meeting in any one calendar month, or for both a board and 
committee meeting held on the same day. To be a member of a 
school board one shall be a qualified elector in the ward from 
which he is elected, able to read and write, who does not hold any 
office or position of honor, trust or emoluments, city, parish, or 
State, or hold any permanent employment in any capacity by 
any board, department, or officer, municipality, parish or State ; 
except that justices of the peace, notaries public, members of 
drainage boards, and postmasters shall be eligible to school 
b.oard membership. 

Section 6. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the several school 
boards are constituted bodies corporate, with the power to sue 
and be sued under the name and style of ''(Name of Parish) 
Parish School Board." Citation shall be served on the president 
of the board, and in his absence on the vice president. 

Section 7. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the parish school 
boards of the several parishes shall elect from among their num- 
ber a president and a vice president and fix their terms of office 
not to exceed six years. They shall also elect or appoint a parish 
superintendent having the qualifications hereafter required, for 
a period of four years, the first superintendent under this act to 
take office July 1, 1917 ; provided that if at any time a parish 



128 



superintendent shall be found incompetent, inefficient or un- 
worthy, he shall be removable for such cause by a majority vote 
of the membership of the parish school board at any regular 
meeting or at any special meeting after due notice. The parish 
school board shall report to the State Board of Education all 
deficiencies in the schools or neglect of duty on the part of the 
teachers, superintendents, or other officers. The members of the 
school boards shall visit and examine the schools in the several 
parishes from time to time. The board shall determine the 
number of schools to be opened, line location of the schoolhouses, 
the number of teachers to be employed, select such teachers from 
nominations made by the parish superintendent, provided that 
two-thirds of the full membership of the board may elect teachers 
without the indorsement of the superintendent. The board shall 
have aiithority to employ teachers by the month or by the year. 
The board shall fix the salaries of the teachers. And the board is 
intrusted with seeing that the provisions of the State school laws 
are complied with. Each school board is authorized to make such 
rules and regulations for its own government, not inconsistent 
with law or regulations of the Louisiana State Board of Educa- 
tion, as it deems proper. The regular meetings of each board 
shall be held in the first week of January, April, July and Octo- 
ber, on such day of the week as each board shall select, and it 
may hold such special or adjourned meetings as the board may 
determine or as occasion may require. Each school board shall 
exercise proper vigilance in securing for the schools of the parish 
all funds destined for the support of the schools, including the 
State funds apportioned thereto, the poll tax collectible, and all 
other funds. The secretary shall keep a record of all transac- 
tions and proceedings of the board. The school board may re- 
ceive land by purchase or donation for the purpose of erecting 
schoolhouses, provide for and secure the erection of same, con- 
struct such outbuildings and enclosures as shall be conducive to 
the protection of property, and make repairs and provide the 
necessary furniture, equipment and apparatus. All contracts 
for improvements shall be to the lowest responsible bidder, the 
board reserving the right to reject any and all bids. They shall 
have the power to recover for any damage that may be done to 



■ 129 

tlie property in their charge ; they may change the location of a 
schoolhouse, sell or dispose of the old site, and use the proceeds 
thereof toward procuring a new one. Provided that the Orleans 
Parish School Board shall have authority to prescribe the rules 
and regulations to govern in the employment and discharge of 
teachers, the building and equipping and repairing of school- 
houses, and the date of the meeting of the school board; and 
provided further that the term of office of the Orleans Parish 
superintendent shall be four years. 

Section 8. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the District At- 
torney of the district shall act as counsel for the school board, 
except in and for the Parish of Orleans, where the city attorney 
of the City of New Orleans shall act as counsel for the school 
board of said parish; but neither the district attorney nor the 
said city attorney shall receive any extra fee, compensation or 
allowance for such service; and except, further, that school 
boards shall have authority to employ special attorneys pro- 
vided such action is approved by the Governor and the At- 
torney-General. 

Section 9. Be it further enacted, etc., That the Parish 
School Board shall have authority to establish such public 
schools as it may deem necessary to provide adequate school 
facilities for the children of the parish. Central or high schools 
may be established when necessary, but no high school shall 
be established without the sanction of the State Board of Edu- 
cation. Practical, industrial and agricultural courses shall be 
fostered by the public school officials, and the State Board of 
Education shall have authority to extend special financial aid 
to schools meeting required standards in such courses. Parish 
school boards shall use the general or current school funds, 
such as the State current school funds, poll taxes, fines, police 
jury appropriations, land rents, proceeds from sale of timber, 
in short, all school funds except those voted or appropriated 
for special purposes, to provide equal sessions for all schools 
in the parish, and no advantage shall be given, out of the cur- 
rent or general funds, to the high schools or any other class 
of schools. Buildings, additions to buildings, repairs, supplies, 
sites, and equipment may be provided out of the general funds. 
Communities desiring better facilities and longer sessions than 



130- 



can be provided by a distribution of the general funds giving 
equal sessions to all schools shall secure same by voting special 
taxes or obtaining additional funds from other sources than 
the current or general school funds. 

Section 10. Be it further enacted, etc., That the free right 
of passage over all public ferries, bridges, and roads which are 
leased out by the State, parish or municipality, or over which 
the State or parish or municipality exercises any control, or 
for which license is paid or toll exacted, be and is hereby 
granted to all children attending schools ; and no tolls or fees 
shall be demanded or exacted from said children by the keep- 
ers or attendants of said ferries, bridges, or roads, in their 
passage to and from school between the hours of seven (7) 
o'clock a. m. and nine (9) o'clock a. m. and three (3) o'clock 
p. m. and six (6) o'clock p. m., provided that on Sundays 
and holidays no children shall have the right to cross said such 
ferries, bridges or roads on terms different from those of any 
ordinary passenger. The provisions of the foregoing section 
shall apply to the Parish of Orleans as well as to the other 
parishes of the State. 

Any person, member of any firm, or employee thereof, or 
employee, manager or officer of any corporation violating the 
provisions of this act shall be deemed guilty of a misdemean- 
or and upon conviction thereof for each offense shall be fined 
in a sum not less than ($5.00) five dollars, and not more 
than ($25.00) twenty-five dollars, or imprisoned in the parish 
jail for a period not less than ten days nor more than thirty 
days or both fine and imprisonment at the discretion of the 
Court. 

Section 11. Be it further enacted, etc.. That no school with 
an average attendance below ten pupils shall be opened or main- 
tained in any locality, except upon recommendation of the 
parish school board, giving its reason for such recommenda- 
tion, and upon approval by the Louisiana State Board of Edu- 
cation. 

Section 12, Be it further enacted, etc.. That the school 
boards of the several parishes of this State are prohibited 
from entering into any contract, agreement, understanding or 
combination, tacitly or expressly, directly or indirectly, with 



131 



any church, monastic or other order or association of any 
religious sect or denomination whatsoever, or with the repre- 
sentatives thereof, or with any person or corporation conduct- 
ing a school which solicits patronage from those of any partic- 
ular religious faith, affiliation or persuasion, for the purpose 
of running any public school or schools of this State together 
or in connection or in combination, with any private or paro- 
chial school, or other institution of learning which may be 
under the control or management of any church, monastic 
or other religious order or association of any religious sect 
or denomination whatsoever, or under the control of any per- 
son or corporation conducting a school which solicits patron- 
age especially from those of any particular religious faith 
affiliation or persuasion. 

Section 13. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the parish 
school board for the purpose of school attendance may divide 
the parish into school districts of such proper and convenient 
area and shape as will best accomodate the children of the 
parish, provided that the board may, if it thinks proper, per- 
mit children to attend schools out of their districts. 

Section 14. Be it further enacted, etc., That the parish 
school boards of two adjoining parishes, where the division 
line intersects a neighborhood whose convenience requires it, 
may lay off a district composed of part of both parishes. Such 
districts shall be reported by the superintendent, together with 
a census of the school children only as belonging to the parish 
in which the schoolhouse may be situated, and reports shall be 
made by the parish superintendent as though the district lay 
entirely in such parish. 

Section 15. Be it further enacted, etc.. That where two 
school districts in different parishes adjoin it shall be lawful 
for the children in either of said districts to be taught in and 
at such schoolhouse as shall be most convenient to them, the 
parents or guardians of the children selecting the school which 
they desire the children to attend, provided that all of the 
school funds to which the children are entitled shall be trans- 
ferred to the school authorities of the parish in which the 
children are taught. No tuition or incidental fee shall be 
charged these or any other children attending the public schools. 



132 



Section 16. Be it further enacted, etc., That the branches 
of spelling, reading, writing, drawing, arithmetic, geography, 
grammar. United States history, the laws of health, including 
the evil effects of alcohol and narcotics, shall be taught in 
every elementary school. In addition to these, such other 
branches shall be taught as the State Board of Education may 
require. The minimum daily session, exclusive of all recesses, 
of every public school shall be five hours, provided that this 
shall not be construed so as to prevent half day sessions where 
the school accomodations are insufficient for all the pupils 
of the district in a whole-day session. Nor shall it interfere with 
any arrangement made for the conduct of the kindergarten 
schools ; provided, that in the Parish of Orleans the school board 
may fix the hours of the daily session of the public schools. A 
school week shall consist of five days and a school month of 
twenty days. 

Section 17. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the president 
of the school board, or in his absence the vice president, shall 
preside at all meetings of the board, call meetings when neces- 
sary, advise with and assist the parish superintendent in pro- 
moting the success of the schools, and, generally, to do and per- 
form all other acts and duties pertaining to his office as presi- 
dent of the board. All deeds and contracts for the schools shall 
be signed by him; the contracts with teachers shall be signed 
by the parish superintendent and the contracting teachers. 

Section 18. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the school 
board may appoint local school directors for each school and 
prescribe their duties. 

Section 19. Be it further enacted, etc., That a suitable office 
shall be provided for the State Superintendent of Public Edu- 
cation at the seat of government, in which he shall file, each 
year separately, all papers, reports, and public documents 
transmitted to him by the Board and officers whose duty it is 
to report to him, and hold the same in readiness to be exam- 
ined by the Governor whenever he sees proper, by any commit- 
tee appointed by the General Assembly, or by any other inter- 
ested citizens; and he shall cause to be kept a record of all 
matters appertaining to his office. In case of vacancy in the 
office of Superintendent of Public Education the Governor 



133 



shall fill the vacancy and submit the name of the appointee 
to the Senate for its confirmation at the first session held after 
the appointment. 

Section 20. Be it further enacted, etc., That the salary of 
the State Superintendent of Public Education shall be 
($5000.00) five thousand dollars per annum, besides vv-hich he 
shall be entitled to office fixtures, stationery, books, fuel and 
light and everything needed to carry on the work of his office. 
He shall have authority to appoint clerks and porters as may 
be necessary and prescribe their duties, provided that the en- 
tire expenses of his office, including salaries, postage and inci- 
dentals shall not exceed the specified appropriation therefor, 
payable in monthly installments, out of the current school 
fund, by the Treasurer of the State, upon warrants of the State 
Superintendent. The State Board of Education shall have au- 
thority to appoint such assistant superintendents and super- 
visors and inspectors, or special lecturers and instructors, as 
may be needed for the proper prosecution of public education, 
and to fix the salaries and expense for such work, which shall 
be paid out of appropriations made by the General Assembly 
out of the school funds. Provided that whenever any parish 
or other subdivision may receive special or continuous service, 
it may contribute in agreed proportions to the expenses there- 
of, either from parish funds, through the police jury, or from 
the school funds, through the parish school board, or through 
special taxes voted or set aside for the purpose. 

Section 21. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the State Su- 
perintendent of Public Education shall have general super- 
vision of all school boards in the parishes, of all elementary, 
high and State schools, and shall see that the school. system of 
the State is carried properly into effect. He shall be ex-officio 
a member of the board of supervisors of the State University 
and Agricultural and Mechanical College, the State Normal 
School, the State Industrial School at Ruston, the State Indus- 
trial School at Lafayette, the State Institute for the Deaf and 
Dumb, the State Institute for the Blind, the Southern Univer- 
sity and all other institutions of learning under the control of 
the State or aided in whole or in part by the State. He shall 
visit all the parishes of the State as often as practicable, and 



134 

shall give due notice of the time of his visit to the parish super- 
intendent, whose duty it shall be to meet and confer with the 
State Superintendent on all matters connected with the inter- 
est of the public schools of the parish. His expenses incurred 
in the discharge of his duty shall be paid out of the current 
school fund, but shall not exceed the amount appropriated per 
annum for the purpose. He shall keep an account of all orders 
drawn or countersigned by him on the Auditor, and of all re- 
turns of settlements; whenever required any part of this ac- 
count shall be furnished by the Auditor. 

Section 22. Be it further enacted, etc., That he shall bien- 
nially or before the meeting of the General Assembly, make a 
report of the condition and progress made and possible im- 
provements to be made in the public schools. The amount and 
condition of the school funds ; how its revenues during the two 
previous years have been distributed; the amount collected 
and disbursed for public school purposes from local taxation, 
or from any other source, and how the same was expended, 
shall be set forth in the report. This report shall contain an 
abstract of the parish superintendents' reports. He shall com- 
municate all facts, statistics and information as are of interest 
to the public schools. He shall cause to be printed a sufficient 
number of copies for the distribution among the members of 
the General Assembly, the State officials, parish school boards, 
libraries, and superintendents of other States and Territories, 
and to meet all exchanges of educational reports. 

Section 23. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the superin- 
tendent in his report shall set forth the objects, and make 
suggestions which may be of interest to, and promote the suc- 
cess of all institutions of learning under his supervision. The 
president of these institutions shall annually, by July 15th, 
furnish the State Superintendent of Public Education such 
statements of their respective institutions as may be necessary 
to enable him to make a full and satisfactory report. 

Section 24. Be it further enacted, etc.. That certified copies 
of records and papers in his office shall in all cases be received 
and admitted in lieu of the originals. He is authorized to make 
copies, when requested by any person so to do, of any papers 



135 

deposited or filed in his office, and of any act or decision made 
by him, and certify the same. 

Section 25. Be it further enacted, etc.. That it is made the 
duty of the State Superintendent of Public Education to re- 
port to the State Board of Education all neglect of duty on 
the part of any school board member, superintendent or teach- 
er, or any improper use of school funds whenever it may come 
to his knowledge. He shall hold annually such conventions of 
school officials, superintendents and teachers as to him may 
seem necessary for the promotion and advancement of the public 
school interests. 

Section 26. Be it further enacted, etc., That the Attorney 
General, when called upon by the State Superintendent of Pub- 
lic Education, the State Board of Education, or any parish su- 
perintendent, when authorized by the parish school board and 
its legal adviser, shall give his opinion in regard to any con- 
troversy or dispute affecting any such officers or boards, relat- 
ing to their respective rights or duties, or affecting the schools 
under their charge, or any of them. The State Superintendent 
of Public Education shall whenever required give advice, ex- 
planations, instructions, or information to the school board 
members and superintendents and to citizens relative to the 
public school law, the duties of the public school officers, the 
rights and duties of parents, guardians, pupils, and all officers, 
the management of the schools, and ail other questions calcu- 
lated to promote the cause of education. He shall perform all 
other duties imposed upon him by law. 

Section 27. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the parish 
school boards throughout the State shall elect a superintendent 
of public schools, who shall hold office for a period of four 
years. He shall not be otherwise employed, except that in a 
parish having fewer than thirty white teachers the parish 
superintendent may act as principal of a public school; he 
shall be a person of high moral character, of recognized execu- 
tive ability, and a practical educator who holds at least 
a first -grade certificate and who has had at least three 
years' experience in teaching or supervising within the five 
years next preceding his election. The school boards shall not 
be required to select for the office of superintendent residents 



~ " 136 

of the parish. The salary of the superintendent shall be not 
more than four thousand dollars ($4000.00) and not less than 
nine hundred dollars ($900.00) per annum and traveling and 
office expenses. Parish of Orleans excepted as to minimum and 
maximum salary only. 

Section 28. Be it further enacted, etc., That the superin- 
tendent during the year shall visit as often as possible each 
school in the parish, and he shall exert his best endeavors in 
promoting the cause of public Education. To this end he shall 
faithfully carry out the requirements of the State school laws 
and the rules and regulations made for the schools by the State 
Board of Education. The school board shall have the authority 
to appoint such assistant superintendents, supervisors, steno- 
graphers and bookkeepers as may be needed, and to fix their 
salaries and prescribe their duties, Orleans Parish included. 

Section 29. Be it further enacted, etc.. That it shall be the 
duty of each superintendent on or before the fifteenth day of 
August each year, to cause to be placed in the hands of the 
Superintendent of Public Education the official report of his 
parish schools for the previous session, the length of session, 
the number of children at school, the cost of instruction of 
each child per month and for the session, the number of pri- 
vate schools, colleges and academies in the parish, and the 
length of the session of same, the number of teachers em- 
ployed, male, female, white and colored, the average wages of 
male teachers, female teachers, the amount of money raised for 
school purposes in the parish by local taxation or otherwise 
and for what purpose it was disbursed, the number and kind 
of schoolhouses, the actual or approximate value of each, the 
number of school libraries and the number of volumes in each, 
and the increase during the session and the amount received 
and expended for same, and any other information required 
by the State Superintendent of Education. In case of neglect or 
failure to make this report in the time required he shall for- 
feit and pay the sum of ten dollars per week, or fraction of a 
week, for the full time of his delinquency, said amount to be 
collected by the parish board for the benefit of the current school 
fund of the parish. 

Section 30. Be it further enacted, etc., That each parish 



137 

superintendent shall keep a record of all business transacted 
by him as parish superintendent, the names, numbers and de- 
scription of school districts, the tabulation of reports of school 
principals made monthly to him by the principals of the schools 
of his parish, and all other papers, books and documents of 
value connected with his office; and they shall be at all times 
subject to inspection and examination by the State Superin- 
tendent of Public Education or by any school officer or citizen. 
In addition to his- annual report to the State Superintendent of 
Public Education hereinbefore provided for, which shall be 
made in accordance with instructions of the State Superin- 
tendent, he shall furnish to the Department of Education such 
narrative and such information as the State Superintendent or 
the State Board of Education may from time to time require 
of him. 

Section 31. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the parish su- 
perintendent may administer the oath required of any of the 
officials of the public schools or of any person required to make 
oath in any manner thereto, except to qualify school board 
members. 

Section 32. Be it further enacted, etc., That the parish su- 
perintendent shall maintain his office at a point in the parish 
designated by the school board and shall keep his office open 
during the usual office hours to receive the reports of teachers 
and others and to transact the business required of him except 
during the time he is visiting schools or attending to his duties 
elsewhere. 

Section 33. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the parish su- 
perintendent shall make quarterly reports to the parish school 
board upon the condition of the schools under his supervision, 
and all such reports, as well as all minutes of proceedings of 
board meeting, shall be regularly published in the official jour- 
nal of the school board. He shall keep full minutes of all pro- 
ceedings of the board in a book provided for that purpose, and 
shall do and perform all other acts and duties pertaining to the 
office of the secretary of the board. 

Section 34. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the parish 
school boards shall provide for and conduct such teachers' in- 
stitutes as they deem necessary, and the State Board of Educa- 



138 

tion shall adopt annually suitable reading circle books for use 
in the institute work, shall prepare rules and regulations for 
the government of the institutes, and do everything possible 
for the benefit and improvement of the teachers engaged in 
public school work. 

Section 35. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the provisions 
of this act relating to teachers' institutes shall not be compul- 
sory in the Parish of Orleans, but the school board of said 
parish at its election may conduct such teachers' institutes as 
it may deem necessary. 

Section 36. Be it further enacted, etc.. That if at any time 
a teacher becomes incompetent, inefficient or unworthy of the 
indorsement given him or her, the parish superintendent shall 
immediately report such fact to the school board of his parish, 
and the said board shall take such action as the nature of the 
case warrants ; provided, that in no case shall a teacher be dis- 
charged without good and sufficient cause. Any teacher dis- 
missed under the above provisions shall receive payment for 
services for the current month. 

Section 37. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the State 
Board of Education shall take entire charge of the examina- 
tion of public school teachers. The Board shall appoint an 
examining committee of as many members as may be required 
and fix the salaries of the members of the committee. 

Section 38. Be it further enacted, etc., That the following 
grades of certificates shall be issued by the examining commit- 
tee: Special High School Certificate, valid for five years; First 
Grade Certificate, valid for five years; Second Grade Certifi- 
cate, valid for three years; Third Grade Certificate, valid for 
one year. The State Board of Education shall determine the 
subjects which shall be used in the examination for any of the 
grades of certificates. 

Section 39. Be it further enacted, etc., That the State Board 
of Education shall have authority to exempt from examination 
graduates of standard colleges and State normal schools located 
in this and other States, provided that in all eases the examin- 
ing committee shall have authortiy to examine such graduates 
in such subjects as the committee may think necessary. 

Section 40. Be it further enacted, etc., That all questions 



139 



to be used in the examination of teachers shall be prepared by 
the examining committee, and when they have been approved 
by the State Superintendent of Education they shall be sent 
to the parish superintendents of the various parishes, who shall 
conduct the examinations, collect the fees hereinafter provided 
for and send fees and answer papers to the State Superinten- 
dent of Public Education. The examining committee shall 
grade all papers and issue certificates to those who shall make 
the average pass mark fixed by the State Board of Education. 

Certificates shall be signed by the Chairman of the Examin- 
ing Committee and the State Superintendent of Public Educa- 
tion, and they shall be valid for the periods named above in 
all of the parishes of the State. 

Section 41. Be it further enacted, etc., That applicants for 
the approval of their diplomas or for teachers' certificates shall 
pay the following fees: Graduates of colleges and State normal 
schools located in other States shall pay a fee of five dollars 
($5.00) for approval of their diplomas; applicants for special 
high school certificates and first grade certificates shall pay a 
fee of two dollars ($2.00) ; applicants for second grade certifi- 
cates shall pay a fee of one dollar and fifty cents ($1.50) ; 
and applicants for third grade certificates shall pay a fee of 
one dollar ($1.00). 

Section 42. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the State Su- 
perintendent shall deposit all fees in an account entitled 
"Examination Fees," and he shall check upon this account for 
the salaries and office expenses of the examiners, keeping re- 
ceipted vouchers for all moneys so drawn, and no other funds 
shall be used for the salaries and expenses of the examining 
committee. 

Section 43, Be it further enacted, etc.. That the State Board 
of Education shall arrange for as many examinations annually 
as may be necessary. 

Section 44. Be it further enacted, etc., That the State Board 
of Education shall have authority to renew first grade teach- 
ers' certificates when satisfactory evidence is produced attest- 
ing the worthiness and competency of the holders asking for an 
extension of their certificates. All college and normal school 
diplomas previously approved by the State Board of Education 



140 

shall be subject to renewal for periods of five years after five 
years from the date of approval or renewal. No fee shall be 
charged for snch renewals or extensions. 

Section 45. Be it further enacted, etc., That no person shall 
be appointed to teach without a written contract for the scho- 
lastic year in which the school is to be taught, and who shall 
not hold a diploma or certificate provided for by this Act of a 
grade sufficiently high to meet the requirements of the school. 

Section 46. Be it further enacted, etc., That all teachers' 
certificates are revocable by the State Board of Education 
upon satisfactory evidence that the holders are incompetent, 
unworthy or immoral. 

Section 47. Be it further enacted, etc., That each teacher 
of any school in this State supported wholly or in part from 
public money shall, before receiving any remuneration for 
services rendered in said capacity, be fully qualified under the 
provisions of this act to teach in the public schools, and shall 
have been employed by the public school authorities author- 
ized to employ teachers. 

Section 48. Be it further enacted, etc., That educational in- 
stitutions of this State which are authorized by special acts of 
the Legislature, or may be so authorized in the future to issue 
diplomas or confer degrees, shall be required to meet the fol- 
lowing standards before the graduates of such institutions shall 
be eligible to teach in the public schools without being required 
to pass the examination for teachers ' certificates : 

(a) In case of normal schools, at least a two-year course in 
advance of the Louisiana high schools, and such schools must 
maintain and operate practice schools having sufficient teaching 
force. 

(b) In the case of colleges, four -year courses in advance 
of Louisiana high schools. . 

Graduates of all Louisiana schools, as well as schools located 
in other States meeting the standards outlined in this Section, 
shall be exempted from all examinations required of teachers, 
but all other persons shall be examined in all subjects required 
of applicants for teachers' certificates. 

Section 49. Be it further enacted, etc.. That teachers now 
holding certificates which are in force and which were hereto- 



141 



fore issued, as the result of an examination held under the au- 
thority of law shall not be required to undergo an examination 
under the provisions of this act, but such certificates are con- 
tinued in force for their respective grades and for the time pro- 
vided for in the law under which they were granted. After the 
promulgation of this Act no person shall be appointed as a 
teacher in the public schools unless he or she holds a certificate 
approved by this Act, or a diploma recognized herein. 

Section 50. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the State Board 
of Education shall have authority to prescribe teacher training 
courses for public or private schools doing work of at least two 
years in advance of that done by the public high schools, and 
to issue first grade certificates, without examination, to the 
graduates of such courses. 

Section 51. Be it further enacted, etc.. That it shall be the 
duty of parish superintendents and teachers of the public 
schools of the State to keep such school records as shall be pre- 
scribed by the State superintendent of Public Education, prior 
to receiving their monthly salaries at the end of the month. 
Each principal of a school shall make to the parish superin- 
tendent such monthly reports as may be required. If any prin- 
cipal wilfully neglects or fails to do this, the parish superin- 
tendent may withhold the salary due until the report is satis- 
factorily made. 

Section 52. Be it further enacted, etc.. That teachers shall 
faithfully enforce the school course of study and the regula- 
tions prescribed in pursuance of law; and if any teacher shall 
wilfully refuse or neglect to comply with such requirements, 
the parish superintendent shall withhold the salary of such 
teacher until the teacher properly performs his or her duties 
in such respect. Every teacher shall have the power and author- 
ity to hold every pupil to a strict accountability for any dis- 
orderly conduct in school, on the playgrounds of the school, 
or during intermission or recess, and to suspend from school 
any pupils for good cause ; provided that such suspension shall 
be reported in writing as soon as practicable to the parish su- 
perintendent, whose decision shall be final; and provided, fur- 
ther, that in the Parish of Orleans the principals of the schools 



142 



shall suspend and report same to the superintendent for ap- 
proval or further action. 

Section 53. Be it further enacted, etc., That the superin- 
tendent of the public schools in every parish shall be and is here- 
by constituted the treasurer of all school funds appropriated by 
the State in such parish, or raised, collected, or donated there- 
in, for the support of the public schools ; he shall receipt for all 
such funds to the Treasurer of the State and to the collector 
of parish taxes. The parish school treasurer shall give an in- 
demnity bond in such sum as may be determined by the parish 
school board, and the parish school board shall pay the pre- 
mium of said bond. The superintendent of public schools shall 
receive no compensation whatever for his services as school 
treasurer. The said treasurer shall deposit the school funds in 
such bank or banks as may be designated by the parish school 
board under the provisions of the law. 

Section 54. Be it further enacted, etc., That the said treas- 
urer immediately upon his appointment shall demand of his 
predecessor in the office of treasurer of the school funds cus- 
tody of all books and papers and of all balances of school 
moneys in his hands as custodian of the school funds of the 
parish. 

Section 55. Be it further enacted, etc., That the treasurer 
shall pay out the school funds intrusted to his charge only on 
warrants approved by the president and signed by the secre- 
tary of the parish school board, and shall state against what 
school fund it is drawn, which warrant shall be drawn only 
in virtue of appropriations regularly made by the parish school 
board; the parish school board shall make annually an estimate 
of the amount of revenues for the year, appropriating the same 
as above required, and no warrant beyond the amount esti- 
mated shall be drawn for any year. These warrants shall be 
numbered and shall specify on their face to whom and for what 
they are given; the treasurer shall pay these warrants only to 
the extent of the amount to the credit on his books and in the 
order in which they are presented, and said warrants shall be 
filed in his office as vouchers ; the accounts kept by him as treas- 
urer of the school funds shall always be subject to examination 
by any one who choses to examine them. 



143 

Section 56. Be it further enacted, etc., That it shall be the 
duty of the various parish school boards throughout the State, 
during the month of July of each year, to adopt a budget of 
revenues to accrue to said school board during the ensuing year ; 
said budget not to include probable revenues arising from doubt- 
ful or contingent sources, 

(a) Within thirty days after the adoption of the budget 
of revenues the school boards throughout the State shall adopt 
a budget of expenditures, not to exceed the budget of revenues ; 
said budget of expenditures shall detail, as nearly as possible 
the said expenditures and no item of indebtedness not included 
in said detailed estimate shall be paid by the treasurer or ex- 
officio treasurer of the school board, under pain, he and his 
bondsmen, of being personally liable for any item so paid and 
not included in said budget of expenditures; if during the 
course of the year revenues from any unexpected or contin- 
gent source should have been realized, an amended budget of 
revenues may be adopted and an amended budget appropriat- 
ing said revenues in the same proportion as above may also be 
adopted. In the Parish of Orleans the budget of expenditures 
shall not be less than ninety-five per cent (95%) of said bud- 
get of revenues. The remainder which shall not be less than one 
per cent (1% ) shall be paid by the Treasurer of the Parish School 
Board for the Parish of Orleans as collected, to the judgment 
creditors of said Board, whether the judgments be absolute 
or limited to the revenues of any year or years. The adoption 
of said budget of revenues shall be considered as the appropria- 
tion of the revenues without any other formal appropriation, 
(b) The duties of said school boards above provided for may 
be enforced before any court of justice by any taxpayer resid- 
ing in the parish or by any party in interest by such appro- 
priate remedies as the law provides. 

Section 57. Be it further enacted, etc., That the parish 
school boards of all parishes of the State shall make an enum- 
eration of all educable children in their respective parishes 
between January 1, 1919, and July 1, 1919, and every four 
years thereafter; provided that the respective school boards 
shall not pay in excess of three cents for each child so enum- 
erated. School board members may be employed to do this 



144 



w®rk. Provided, that the wilful and fraudulent padding of 
the enumeration rolls shall be punished by a fine not exceed- 
ing one thousand ($1,000.00) dollars, or imprisonment in the 
parish jail not to exceed one year, or both fine and imprison- 
ment at the discretion of the Court, and the loss to the parish 
of the current school funds. 

Section 58. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the Parish 
school boards shall have authority to provide transportation for 
children living more than two miles from a school of suitable 
grade. 

Section 59. Be it enacted, by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, that Section 59 of Act 120 of the Session of 
the Legislature of Louisiana of 1916, amended by Act 142 of the 
Session of the Legislature of Louisiana of 1918 be amended and 
re-enacted so as to read as follows : 

That parish school boards shall have authority to rent six-. 
teenth section lands, sell timber or lease mineral rights of same, 
by resolution of the boards and without the authority of a 
vote of the electors of the township in which the lands are 
located. All leases for the sixteenth section lands and sales 
of timber on sixteenth sections shall be executed by the Superin- 
tendent and Treasurer of the Parish school board. The leases 
of mineral rights of sixteenth section lands and the sale of six- 
teenth section lands shall be executed by the parish Treasurer 
of the parish in which the sixteenth section lands are located. 
All elections to authorize the sale of sixteenth section lands, 
shall be conducted by the parish school boards. All funds 
realized from these sources shall be placed to the credit of the 
current school fund of the parish in which the sixteenth section 
lands are located. 

Section 60. Be it further enacted, etc., That the State Board 
of Education and the parish school officials shall do everything 
possible to eradicate adult illiteracy in Louisiana. 

Section 61. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the assessors 
and tax collectors shall receive the fees allowed by law for 
assessing and collecting taxes on only the poll and other taxes 
actually collected. The school boards shall pay no commissions 
to assessors and tax collectors on poll or other taxes not actually 
collected and paid over to the school treasurer. 



145 

Section 62. Be it further enacted, etc., That the parish 
school board shall have authority to borrow money to meet 
current expenses, provided the funds realized from such loans 
are used to pay items included in the budget of expenditures 
previously adopted by the board and that no revenues except 
those of the current session are pledged to secure any such loan 
or loans. 

Section 63. Be it further enacted, etc., That the Parish of 
Orleans shall be excepted from the provisions of this act, Sec- 
tions 1 to 62, both inclusive, except those sections specifically 
conferring certain authority or imposing certain obligations 
upon the Orleans public schools ■ of ficials, and except the follow- 
ing sections, which shall apply to Orleans as well as to the rest 
of the State, namely, 4, 8, 10, 12, 22, 25, 26, 27, 29, 30, 51, 56, 
57, 58, 59, 60, 62. 

Section 64. Be it further enacted, etc.. That all the public 
schools of the Parish of Orleans shall be under the direction 
and control of the Orleans Parish School Board. Said Board 
shall consist of five members. 

The First Board shall be elected at the regular congression- 
al election in the year 1916, provided that the Board of Direc- 
tors then elected shall be divided into three groups, the first 
group to consist of the two members who receive the greatest 
number of votes, who shall serve for a term of six years, the 
second group to consist of the two members who receive the 
next highest number of votes, who shall serve for a term of four 
years, the third group to consist of the member who receives the 
next highest number of votes, who shall serve for a term of two 
years. The successors of the members in the three groups above 
referred to shall be elected for terms of six years, provided that 
the said elections shall be nonpartisan; That the names of all 
of the candidates for election shall be placed in alphabetical 
order in a separate column of the ballot under the general head- 
ing "Orleans Parish School Board" without reference to party 
affiliation or other individual designation whatever, and that 
the said candidates shall be nominated by nomination papers 
only signed for each candidate by not less than one hundred 
(100) qualified voters of the Parish of Orleans. The said nomi- 
nation papers shall be furnished, prepared, subscribed, certified 



146 



and promulgated in the manner and form provided for by the 
general election law, i. e., Act 152 of 1898 as amended by subse- 
quent acts or by-laws on the subject matter in so far as the 
provisions of said Acts are not in conflict herewith, provided 
that nomination papers shall be filed with the Secretary of State 
before five o'clock p. m. on the fourth Tuesday before the day 
of election, and provided further that in cases where under the 
law it becomes necessary to hold an election to fill a vacancy, 
nomination papers shall be filed not less than fifteen full days 
before the day of election. The candidates receiving the great- 
est number of votes shall be declared elected. 

All vacancies occurring in said board shall be filled by ap- 
pointment by the Governor of the State until the next congres- 
sional election, at which time the vacancies shall be filled by an 
election by the people in the manner hereinabove provided. The 
members of said Orleans Parish School Board shall be elected 
from the city at large under the General election laws of the 
State, except so far as the provisions of such laws are in conflict 
with or contrary to the provisions of this Act. 

The election or elections herein provided for shall be held 
under the general election laws in so far as they are not in con- 
flict with this act. 

Section 65. Be it further enacted, etc.. That said board is 
hereby constituted a body corporate in law with power to sue 
and be sued under the name and style of the "Orleans Parish 
School Board ' ' ; legal processes shall be served on the President 
and in his absence or inability to act on the Vice-President. The 
said board shall have the right to acquire, hold, lease and sell 
real and personal property ; to receive bequests and donations ; 
to condemn property needed for public educational purposes; 
to adopt rules and regulations, not inconsistent with law, or the 
rules and regulations of the State Board of Education made in 
conformity with law, for the government of the schools and the 
school business of the parish as it may deem proper. 

Three members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction 
of business. 

The said board shall meet as soon as elected, or as soon there- 
after as practicable, and organize by electing a president and 



147 

vice president from among their own members, and a secretary, 
who shall not be a member of the board. 

The said secretary, in addition to other duties of his office 
which may be fully prescribed by the board, shall keep the ac- 
counts of said board in such manner as to be in strict accord- 
ance with such budget as it may adopt, certifying to the said 
board at each monthly meeting to the expenses of said board 
for each current month. 

That said board shall at first meeting, or as soon thereafter 
as practicable, elect a competent and experienced educator to be 
designated as superintendent whose duty shall be hereinafter 
prescribed, ha shall hold office for a term of four years, com- 
mencing July 1, 1917, subject to removal by the board for in- 
competency, neglect of duty or malfeasance of which after an 
impartial hearing by the board he shall have been deemed guilty. 
The said board shall also elect as many assistant superintendents 
who shall have the same qualification as the superintendent as 
said board may deem necessary to properly conduct the public 
schools of said parish, which number of assistant superinten- 
dents may be increased or diminished at the pleasure of the 
board. 

The said board shall also elect an attendance officer, and em- 
ploy such other officers, clerks and assistants as may be necessary 
to properly conduct the public schools of the parish. 

In addition to the powers, duties and rights hereinbefore 
granted to and imposed upon said board, the powers, duties and 
rights of said Orleans Parish School Board shall be as follows : 

First : It shall have custody of all buildings, records, papers, 
furniture and property of any kind pertaining to the administra- 
tion of the schools, and shall have management of all the public 
schools within the limits of the Parish of Orleans. The said 
board shall also have power to pledge its revenues, for the cur- 
rent year, whether received from the State, city. Board of Liqui- 
dation of City Debt, or otherwise, for the purpose of promptly 
paying its obligations or for such other purposes as the said 
board may deem proper. 

Second: ' It shall prescribe rules and regulations governing 
the eligibility for appointment as teacher, principal, supervisor, 
or assistant in the public schools of the parish. Provided that 



148 

nothing in this act shall invalidate any certificate of eligibility 
to teach or sujpervise now in force. 

All certificates of eligibility to teach or supervise issued by the 
said board shall be good- for five years, provided that the teachers 
in service shall not be required to stand further examination to 
continue in the same class of service. 

Nothing in this Act shall be so construed as to vacate the office 
■of" any teacher for which he or she shall have been appointed 
xinder existing laws, nor as requiring persons now teaching in 
the public schools of the Parish of Orleans, to qualify in accord- 
ance with this act. 

Third : It shall employ such teachers, principals, supervisors, 
assistants, janitors and other employees as may bPSjeemed neces- 
sary and adjust and fix equitably the salaries of the superin- 
tendents, assistant superintendents, secretary, attendance officer, 
principals, teachers, janitors and all other employees of the 
board. 

All teachers now employed in said public schools shall be re- 
garded as permanent employees of said Board, and said teachers 
shall not be removed from office except on written charges of im- 
morality, neglect of duty, incompetency, malfeasance or non- 
feasance of which he has been found guilty by the board after 
such investigation and report as may be ordered or provided for 
by the rules and regulations to be adopted by the said board, 
provided, that the marriage of a female teacher at any time shall 
ipso facto vacate her position. 

Fourth : It shall elect all teachers for the grades in element- 
ary schools from among the candidates holding certificates in the 
order of their merit as shown by the average attained on grad- 
uating from the New Orleans Public Normal School or at the 
regular competitive examinations, provided for under this sec- 
tion. 

It shall elect from the respective list of eligibles, all super- 
visors, principals, and all other teachers whose appointment is 
not provided for under this section of this act. All teachers 
hereafter appointed in said schools shall be appointed annually 
for the first three years, after which time the appointment may 
be made permanent by the board after a report by the Superin- 
tendent. 



149 

It shall print annually in September a list showing the names 
of all applicants who have received certificates to teach during 
the preceding' year and the grade of such certificates. The list 
shall also contain the names of all eligibles for appointment. 

Fifth : It shall adopt, on the recommendation of the superin- 
tendent of the parish schools, the course of instruction for all 
schools under its supervision and control and may adopt, and may 
supply, free of charge, all textbooks, supplementary books, and 
school supplies used in the schools. 

The board shall appropriate annually not less than the sum of 
two thousand dollars ($2,000.00), or as much thereof as may be 
needed for the purchase of school books to be used by pupils in 
the public schools of the Parish of Orleans, which said books shall 
be distributed as the said board of directors may provide, and 
shall be used by children to whom distributed under such condi- 
tions, restrictions, rules and regulations as the board may pre- 
scribe. 

Sixth : It shall maintain a complete system of elementary and 
secondary schools and may provide and maintain, as means will 
permit or necessities may require, or as may be required by law, 
kindergartens, intermediate schools; libraries and museums; 
evening schools; and instructions for parents and other adults; 
vacation schools ; playgrounds and gymnasiums ; special instruc- 
tion or schools for delinquent, dependent, or defective children; 
normal schools ; trade and industrial schools ; commercial schools ; 
or social centers. 

Seventh : It shall cause to be prepared and printed in suffi- 
cient quantities to meet the reasonable demand for such, an an- 
nual report, covering the condition, progress, receipts, and ex- 
penditures, needs of the schools and such other matters as it may 
deem proper and necessary. 

Eighth : It may make appropriations of money out of any of 
its funds to the Teachers ' Ketirement Fund of the public schools 
of the parish, provided that the sums so appropriated, in any 
one year, shall not exceed Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000). 

Ninth : It shall hold regular meetings at least once a month 
on a day or days to be fixed by it. 

Tenth : It may maintain one or more normal schools for pro- 



150 



fessional training and improvement of cadidates for teacherships. 
To graduates of these normal schools, also to proficient students 
in the city high and industrial schools, the board may, in its 
discretion, award diplomas and certificates showing the grade 
attained. Graduates of these normal schools may be deemed 
preferred candidates for vacant positions in the parish public 
schools. Diplomas awarded to graduates of these normal schools 
shall be deemed equivalent to teacher certificates of the highest 
grade for public schools ; provided that the rank of said grad- 
uates of these normal schools in the list of cadidates eligible for 
teacherships in the grades of the elementary schools shall be 
based on the average of all of the grades in the various subjects 
in their course of study in said normal schools. 

Eleventh : It shall make an enumeration of all educable chil- 
dren in the Parish of Orleans before July 1, 1919, and every 
four years thereafter. 

Twelfth : It shall present to the Commission Council for the 
City of New Orleans, on or before October 1 of each year, full 
information in respect to the financial needs of the schools and 
the efficient maintenance and operation of the schools. 

It shall, from time to time, as the needs arise, petition said 
council for appropriations for the purchase of grounds and the 
erection and repair of school buildings. Provided, that the said 
Orleans Parish School Board shall have the right to designate 
the name and location of schools. 

Section 66. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the Parish Su- 
perintendent of Orleans Parish Schools shall aid the directors in 
organizing- the schools and in improving the methods of instruc- 
tion therein, in maintaining general uniformity and discipline in 
the management of all schools ; in adopting courses of study and 
textbooks for use in the schools; in examining candidates for 
teacherships, and in conducting periodical examination of pupils 
for promotion through the respective grades of the schools. He 
shall make a monthly report on the condition and needs of the 
schools to his Parish School Board at its regular meeting. He 
shall be entitled to participate in the deliberations and debates 
of said board, but shall have no vote. Whenever notified to be 



151 



present he shall attend meetings of the State Board of Education. 

Section 67, Be it further enacted, etc., That the Commis- 
sioner of Public Finance of the City of New Orleans shall ex- 
officio be the treasurer of said board and shall receive all funds 
apportioned by the State to such city, or received or collected for 
the support of the free public schools from any and all sources. 
He shall give bond, with good and solvent security, in the sum of 
fifty thousand dollars ($50,000.00) in favor of the said board 
and its successors in office, to be accepted and approved by said 
board and recorded in the mortgage office of the parish, and 
which bond shall then be filed and kept on record in the office of 
the said board. The filing of said bond, and taking and filing 
the usual oath of office before any officer authorized to adminis- 
ter same, shall qualify the Treasurer to act. 

Section 68. Be it further enacted, etc., That the said Treas- 
urer shall hold his office during his term of office as Commissioner 
of Public Finance. He shall keep his office open at all such times 
as may be prescribed by said Board for the payment of pay rolls 
or checks in favor of teachers and other employees of the board. 

Section 69. Be it further enacted, etc.. That it shall be the 
duty of the Commission Council of the City of New Orleans in 
making up its budget of annual expenses, to include therein the 
amount necessary to meet the expenses of the schools, as shown 
hj the statement of the actual attendance, and the cost of in- 
struction, with such additional allowance for probably increased 
attendance and contingent expenses as may seem just and reason- 
able to the Commission Council, and keep in good repair all 
schoolhouses and school grounds belonging to the City of New 
Orleans, and in charge of the said Parish School Board. Said 
Commission Council shall as the needs arise provide for the pur- 
chase of additional school grounds and for the erection of school 
buildings. 

Section 70. Be it further enacted, etc., That Sections 63 to 
69, both inclusive, of this act shall apply only to the Parish of 
Orleans. 

Section 71. Be it further enacted, etc.. That all of Acts 214 
of 1912 and 39 of 1910, and all other laws or parts of laws that 



152' 



are in conflict with the provisions of this Act shall be and they 
are hereby repealed. 

ACT No. 131 OF 1916. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the G-eneral Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, That, in addition to the branches in which 
instruction is now given in the public schools of the State of 
Louisiana, instruction shall also be given to the male pupils 
thereof whenever practicable in all the grades higher than the 
eighth grade in the principles and practice of military science 
and tactics, especially with reference to the duties of the soldier 
and object of general military interest. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., That in all grades of 
the public schools of the State higher than the eighth, at least 
one hour a week shall be devoted to instruction, study and prac- 
tice of military science and tactics. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc.. That all laws or parts 
of laws in conflict with the provisions of this Act be and the 
same are hereby repealed. . 

ACT No. 150 OF 1916. 

Whereas, by Act 153 of 1845 the Legislature of Louisiana 
created and incorporated "The Gretna Academy" into a body 
politic solely for educational purposes for the benefit of the 
children and inhabitants of the First School District of the 
Parish of Jefferson; and 

Whereas, by Act 34 of 1856 the legislature re-enacted Section 
3 of said Act 153 of 1845, by which it was provided that five 
directors should be elected on the first Monday of January of 
each and every year by the qualified voters residing in the said 
School District and providing that none but a stockholder or a 
qualified voter under the Constitution and laws of this State, 
residing within said School District shall be eligible as a direc- 
tor; and 

Whereas, no Board of Directors has been elected to admin- 
ister the affairs of said Gretna Academy since January 15th, 
1900, and no meeting of the said Board of Directors elected on 
said date has been held since May 11th, 1900, and no use has 
been made of the said property for school or other purposes 



158 



since the year 1911 and said property is in a dilapidated and 
uninhabitable condition and said corporation has practically be- 
come defunct and has ceased to exercise the power and authority 
conferred upon it and to make use of the property belonging to 
it under its charter; and 

Whereas, no one could be possibly authorized or capacitated 
to represent or act for it after the dates above set forth, and its 
affairs have remained unliquidated and unsettled and the prop- 
erty has been going to ruin from that time until this, and 

"Whereas, under the Act 153 of 1845, being the Act incorpo- 
rating the. "Gretna Academy", as amended by Act 34 of 1856, 
no stock-holders or creditors are authorized by said acts or by 
the general law to liquidate this corporation, and it being a mat- 
ter of public and general interest that the wise, benevolent pur- 
poses of the original incorporators and the legislature to aid and 
encourage the diffusion of public enlightenment and education 
be conserved by furnishing adequate remedy for the securing, 
preservation and proper use of the property and funds of said 
derelict corporation; Therefore, 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State 
of Louisiana, that any stockholder, or any member of the last 
elected Board of Directors of the Gretna Academy, of the Parish 
of Jefferson, be and they are hereby granted the right of action 
to provoke a judicial liquidation of the affairs, funds and prop- 
erty of the corporation known as "The Gretna Academy", of 
Jefferson Parish, and empowering the said judicial liquidator to 
sue for all property, real and personal, acquired by said Gretna 
Academy, its stockholders and directors, and belonging to same ; 
that said judicial liquidator be, and he is hereby, authorized to 
take possession of the said property and funds of the said Gretna 
Academy and administer same for the benefit of the public 
schools of the second and third wards of the Parish of Jefferson ; 
provided, that the right to make any and all legal and equitable 
defenses is reserved to all persons or corporations who may have 
any claim to any of the property or funds belonging to the said 
Gretna Academy. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the said judicial 



154 

liquidator, after furnishing bond in a sum to be determined by 
the Court, shall be authorized to sell at public auction or other- 
wise all of the property belonging to or recovered for the said 
Gretna Academy, upon such terms as he may deem advisable; 
provided, that the authority to make said sale must be obtained 
from the Judge of the District Court of the Parish of Jefferson 
after ten days publication of the notice of the intended sale and 
the terms thereof made in a newspaper in the City of Gretna; 
provided further, that any person in interest shall have the right 
to oppose the granting of said order providing for the sale and 
the terms of said sale, in the same manner as opposition to the 
accounts of receivers are made. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc., That after the sale of 
said property by the said judicial liquidator he shall have the 
power to refund to all living stockholders the amount of their 
stock subscription, providing claim is made therefor within ten 
days after notice of the filing of his final account; and the bal- 
ance of said funds remaining, after deducting the expenses of 
said proceedings, shall be turned over to the Board of School 
Directors of Jefferson Parish, with the understanding that said 
funds must be reinvested by said School Board in the construc- 
tion of a school house or the purchase of school equipment for 
the benefit of the school children of the City of Gretna. 

Section 4. Be it further enacted, etc.. That all laws or parts 
of laws contrary to, or in conflict with the provisions of this act 
be and are hereby repealed. 

ACT No. 179 OF 1916. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, That the Governor of the State of Louisiana 
be and he is hereby authorized and empowered to accept, on the 
part of the State, the terms and provisions of what is known as 
the (Smith-Hughes Bill) now before the Congress of the United 
States, providing for Vocational Education, by providing Federal 
money to be used in cooperation with the State in promotion of 
Education in Agriculture, Trades and Industries and in the 
preparation of teachers for vocational subjects when the same 
shall have been passed by Congress, 



155 



Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., That under the terms 
and requirements of this Act the State Board of Education is 
hereby designated as the board to cooperate with the Federal 
Board for Vocational Education in the administration of the 
said Act, 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc., that this Act shall 
take effect from and after the passage of the said "Smith- 
Hughes Bill" by the Congress of the United States. 

ACT No. 189 OF 1916. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State 
of Louisiana that the Sheriffs and ex-ofificio Tax Collectors 
throughout the State, Parish of Orleans excepted, shall between 
the first and tenth day of each month, submit to the Superin- 
tendent of Public Education in their respective parishes, a state- 
ment showing the name or names of the person or persons who 
have paid poll taxes during the preceding month. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., That this statement 
when so submitted shall become a public document, subject to 
inspection by the public. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc., That any Sheriff and 
ex-officio Tax Collector violating the provisions of this act shall 
be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction shall be fined, 
not exceeding $250, upon conviction before any court of com- 
petent jurisdiction, or be imprisoned in the parish jail for not 
less than thirty days nor more than six months, or both in the 
discretion of the court. 

Section 4. Be it further enacted, etc.. That all laws or parts 
of laws in conflict herewith, be and are hereby repealed. 

ACT No. 236 OF 1916. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana that in case there shall occur a vacancy in 
the office of Coroner, Justice of the Peace, Constable, Police 
Juror or Member of the Parish School Board, Members of 
Boards of Aldermen of municipalities having a population of 
less than five thousand, whether the same may be created by 
death, resignation or otherwise the Governor of the State of 



156 

Louisiana is hereby authorized and empowered to fill such va- 
cancy for the remainder of the unexpired term by appointment, 
provided that such appointee shall possess all the qualifications 
under existing laws required to hold said office. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., That all laws or parts 
of laws in conflict herewith be and the same are hereby repealed. 

ACT No. 237 OF 1916. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, That the Louisiana State School for the Deaf, 
situated at Baton Eouge, Louisiana, and the Louisiana State 
School for the Blind, situated at Baton Rouge, Louisiana, shall 
hereafter be under the government and control of the State 
Board of Education of the State of Louisiana. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc.. That all laws or parts 
of laws in conflict with the provisions of this act be and the same 
are hereby repealed. 

RESOLUTION OF THE STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION. 

Be it hereby resolved, That all public schools of the State 
below the grade of the State Approved High Schools, meeting 
the following requirements, shall be placed on the State Ap- 
proved List of Elementary Schools, and shall be entitled to such 
privileges and advantages as are hereinafter stated: 

Requirements. 

These schools shall be classed as (1) Ungraded, Class D, 
(2) Graded, Class C, (3) Graded, Class B, and (4) Graded, 
Class A. 

The minimum teacher limit for state recognition for each class 
shall be as follows : 

(1) One ^teacher; (2) two teachers; (3) three teachers ; (4) 
four teachers. 

The maximum grade enrollment limit for state recognition 
for each class shall be as follows: 

(1) Five grades; (2) seven grades; (3) nine grades; (4) 
ten grades. 

Satisfactory evidence must also be furnished the Supervisor 
of Elementary Schools in the following particulars : 



157 



1. That title to the school property is vested in the Parish 
School Board. 

2. That the school will maintain at least an eight months' 
session. 

3. That the school building is adequate in size, comfortable 
and sanitary. 

4. That the equipment in the way of furniture, libraries, 
laboratory, blackboard, tools, etc., is sufficient to enable teachers 
to do good work. 

5. That the teachers employed are fully competent. 

6. That the course of study will be or is being carried out 
in a satisfactory manner. 

RESOLUTION OF THE LOUISIANA STATE BOARD 
OF EDUCATION. 

Adopted September 1, 1916. 

Whereas, it is highly essential that every parish school 
board should know definitely the different items and value of 
all public school property owned by the Board ; and. 

Whereas, it is important that schoolhouses, school furniture 
and other public school property should receive proper care 
and attention ; therefore, be it 

Resolved, That it shall be the duty of the parish superinten- 
dents and the parish school boards in all of the parishes of the 
State to keep on file in the offices of the boards and in the dif- 
ferent schoolhouses an up-to-date inventory of all public school 
property, these ihventories to be available for examination by 
State or parish school officials and by interested citizens at all 
times. Be it further 

Resolved, That from time to time State and parish school 
officials shall do everything in their power to impress upon 
teachers, children and citizens the importance of properly pro- 
tecting school buildings, school furniture and all other school 
property. 



158 

REQUIREMENTS FOR STATE APPROVAL OF 
LOUISIANA HIGH SCHOOLS 

[Resolution of State Board of Education, September, 1916.] 

1. Title to the property on which the school is located must be 
vested in the parish school board, or in the public, provided 
that in the latter case full use of the property shall be ac- 
corded the parish school board for the purpose of maintain- 
ing a high school, and the terms of the lease specified in the 
contract properly drawn and duly recorded, 

2. The parish school board must pass a resolution establishing 
such school as a high school. 

3. All the schools in the parish where the high school is estab- 
lished must run for a minimum of seven months, except 
where a special fund is provided to maintain the high school 
for the length of its term in excess of the common school 

term maintained out of the general school funds of the parish. 

4. No high school shall be approved or maintained with an at- 
tendance of fewer than twenty students in the high school 
department ; provided that this ruling does not prevent each 
parish from maintaining at least one high school. 

5. The minimum length of session for the elementary grades as 
well as the high school department of such school shall be 
nine months. 

6. The teaching force shall be adequate and shall in every case 
consist of at least two teachers, each of whom shall be en- 
gaged exclusively in the work above the elementary grades. 

7. No teacher holding lower than a first grade certificate shall 
be employed in the elementary department of state approved 
high schools. 

8. Buildings for high schools shall meet modern standards of 
heating, lighting, and ventilation, and have proper classroom 
space and furnishings for the work of these schools. 

9. The course of study must, taken with the lower grades, cover 
at least eleven years. 

10. An approved high school shall follow the state course of 
study. 

11. The minimum length of recitation periods for high school 
subjects shall be forty minutes. - 



159 



12. The inductive sciences, physics, chemistry, and biology, shall 
be taught by the individual laboratory methods, the appa- 
ratus to cost not less than $150 for physics, $75 for chemis- 
try, and $75 for biology. All apparatus shall be kept in 
cases provided with glass doors. 

13. Every state high school shall have a library for the high 
school department costing at least $75 and containing at 
least one complete dictionary, one general encyclopedia, and 
such other books as will enable students to do the collateral 
reading in the English course and the reference work recom- 
mended for the history courses. 

14. The principal of such school shall devote at least two recita- 
tion periods per day to supervision. 

15. In order to meet the requirements of the State Sanitary 
Code, it is essential that each approved high school shall 
employ a janitor. 

16. The cumulative record card in a form approved by the State 
Department of Education must be used for each pupil en- 
rolled in a state approved high school and kept in an index 
card-filing cabinet. Monthly reports must be issued to par- 
ents, showing the pupil's record in attendance, scholarship, 
and conduct. In addition to the foregoing, each principal 
must keep in his office full and complete records of every 
detail of the school, such as the names of the teachers, their 
assignment of work in the school, the certificates held, their 
salary, scholarship, etc. Likewise, there must be kept a com- 
plete record of all expenditures for the ordinary expenses of 
the school — incidentals, repairs, permanent improvements, 
library, laboratory, etc. 

17. No school shall be approved until it has been inspected and 
has served one year as a provisional high school, 

18. Copy of the title or the lease to the property, copy of the 
resolution passed by the parish board, certificate that the 
schools of the parish run for seven months, or that a suffi- 
cient special tax has been voted for maintenance, and copy of 
the resolution of the parish school board to the State Board 
of Education asking that such school be made a high school, 
must be forwarded to the State Board of Education for their 
consideration and approval or disapproval. 



160 

19. The lists of science apparatus purchased and the lists of high 
school library books shall be submitted to the state high 
school inspector for approval. 

20. Principals of state approved high schools must submit at the 
beginning of each term of the school year on blanks supplied 
by the high school inspector the daily program showing the 
work of each class and teacher in the high school depart- 
ment; and at the end of the first month of school he shall 
submit on department blanks a general report on the school. 
At the end of the school year the principal shall submit to 
the high school inspector on department blanks a full and 
accurate report on buildings, equipment, enrollment, promo- 
tions, finances, etc. The parish superintendent will with- 
hold the last month 's salary of the principal until he receives 
notice from the high school department that satisfactory re- 
ports have been submitted. 

21. There must be an eleventh-year class when the school is 
approved, and prospects of a sufficient high school enroll- 
ment to continue the high school permanently, 

22. The work of the pupils must be kept up to the standard set 
by the state course of study with respect to quantity and 
quality, 

23. In order for a school to become recognized, therefore, it is 
necessary that it be properly taught several sessions in ad- 
vance of its approval and that it be equipped with such 
science apparatus and such library equipment as will en- 
able the students to do properly all work required. 

Note: All regulations governing state approved high schools ap- 
ply with equal force to provisional high schools. Upon 
favorable report after inspection, provisional high schools 
will share in the state appropriation for high schools, 
[Since the adoption of this resolution, the special high school 

fund, by state appropriation, has been discontinued.] 

REQUIREMENTS FOR STATE APPROVAL OF JUNIOR 
HIGH SCHOOLS IN LOUISIANA 

Be it resolved (by the State Board of Education), That two- 
year high schools to be known as junior high schools be estab- 



J61 



lished beginning with the session 1917-1918, and that these schools 
shall meet conditions as follows : 

1. The ninth grade shall be the highest grade taught in such 
school, with not fewer than twenty-five children above the 
sixth grade. 

2. There shall be not fewer than three teachers giving full time 
to the first six grades and not fewer than two teachers (in- 
cluding the principal) giving full time to the seventh, eighth, 
and ninth grades. 

3. The building shall be adequate and shall meet the state 
standards in force for other high schools. 

4. Persons who have completed two years of college work be- 
yond the high school and persons qualified to teach in any 
other high school in this state are eligible to teach in a junior 
high school. Teachers of grades one-six must hold first 
grade certificates or higher. 

5. There shall be a biological laboratory equipped with appa- 
ratus suited to the needs of the children for the teaching of 
botany, zoology, and physiology. 

6. There shall be reference books and other library facilities 
suited to the needs of the students, 

7; Furnishings and general equipment shall be adequate and 
of standard quality. 

8. The length of the session shall be not less than nine months. 

9. Junior high schools will share in state high school appropria- 
tions, each receiving one-half as much as a senior high school. 

REQUIREMENTS FOR HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS IN 

STATE APPROVED HIGH SCHOOLS 

IN LOUISIANA 

[Resolution of State Board of Education, September, 1916.] 
All teachers of high school subjects in state approved high 
schools in Louisiana must satisfy one of the following condi- 
tions : 
1. Teachers who are graduates of a standard college or univer- 
sity as recognized by the Association of Colleges and Second- 
ary Schools of the United States. (By standard college or 
university is meant one that requires the completion of a 



162 



four-year high school course for entrance to its freshman 
class and grants the bachelor's degree upon completion of a 
four-year college course.) 

2. Teachers now engaged in high school work who are gradu- 
ates of institutions of lower rank than standard colleges and 
undergraduates of standard colleges whose work and profes- 
sional advancement are satisfactory to the superintendent, 
high school principal, and State Department of Education. 

3. New teachers whose scholastic attainments entitle them to a 
rating of thirty-six or more college hours. 

4. For session 1917-1918 new teachers must show a rating of 
forty or more college hours; for session 1918-19 forty-four 
or more college hours; for session 1919-20 forty-eight or 
more college hours, etc., advancing the minimum four college 
hours each session. 

Note: All regulations governing four-year high schools apply 
with equal force to all junior high schools, except as specif- 
ically set forth in the foregoing resolution. 

ACT No. 72 OF 1918. 

An Act to permit donations mortis causa and inter vivos to be 
made for such educational, literary or charitable purposes as 
the donor may direct or desire, or as the trustee or trustees, 
to whom such donations shall be made may, from time to 
time, appoint, create or change ; to authorize such trustees, 
in any such case, to organize and constitute a corporation, 
and define the powers and duration of such corporation; to 
authorize such corporations, as well as trust companies and 
trust banks, organized under the laws of this State, to accept, 
hold and administer such donations as trust estates; to 
authorize the Governor of the State, whenever a trust com- 
pany or trust bank shall fail or decline to act or cease to 
exist, to appoint a successor ; to provide that such trustees, 
trust companies or trust banks, shall have the power to ac- 
cept and administer donations other than the original dona- 
tion ; and to exempt such donations from the provision of 
the laws of the State relative to substitutions, trusts and 
fidei commissa. 
Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 



163 



State of Louisiana, That it shall be lawful for anyone to make a 
donation inter vivos or mortis causa of any description of proper- 
ty to a trustee or trustees for educational, charitable or literarj' 
purposes generally, without designating the particular purpose 
to be fostered or aided, and in such cases to permit the trustee or 
trustees to appoint, create or change, from time to time and as 
often as they may deem wise, the beneficiary of such trust estate 
or any part thereof; provided, however, that the donor may, at 
his pleasure, name and appoint the particular use to be made 
of the donation and may impose such conditions not contrary to 
law as he may desire. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc.. That when such gifts 
shall be made to individual trustees, the trustees named in the 
act of donation and their successors or substitutes, or such of 
them as are willing and may accept the trust, shall, upon com- 
plying with the laws of this State, relative to the organization 
of corporations for literary, scientific, religious and charitable 
purposes, constitute a body corporate with the power of contin- 
uous succession and unlimited duration, and with all the powers 
conferred upon corporations by said laws or customs; provided, 
however, that the requirement of said laws as to the number of 
persons necessary for the formation of a corporation shall not 
apply to such trustees ; and provided further, that if any of the 
trustees will not or cannot accept the trust, then such of those 
named as are willing may accept, and, in the manner prescribed 
in the act of donation, proceed to fill the vacancies up to the 
required number. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc., That any trust company 
or trust bank created by the laws of this State shall have the 
power to accept, hold and administer such donations and to 
exercise all the powers conferred in and by this act. 

Section 4. Be it further enacted, etc., That whenever a trust 
company or bank trustee shall fail or decline to act for any cause, 
or shall cease to exist, the Governor of the State shall designate 
and appoint a trust company or trust bank as successor trustee 
to the trust company or trust bank so failing to act or ceasing 
to exist, and such successor trustee shall have all of the powers 



164 



granted to, and be subject to all the obligations imposed upon 
the original trustee 

Section 5. Be it further enacted, etc., That said board of 
trustees, trust company, or trust bank shall administer the prop- 
erty entrusted to them in conformity with the directions con- 
tained in the act of donation, if there be such directions, and, 
otherwise, shall administer the same in their discretion; and 
shall have all the powers needed in such administration, and 
shall be entitled to reasonable compensation for their services. 

Section 6. Be it further enacted, etc.. That said board of 
trustees, trust company, or trust bank shall have the power to 
accept and administer other donations mortis causa or inter vivos 
from the same or other donors, and to apply the same as may be 
prescribed in the subsequent act of donation; and that the ad- 
ministration of the property covered by such subsequent act of 
donation, shall be governed by the directions contained in the 
subsequent act of donation, if there be such directions, and 
otherwise shall be in the discretion of the trustees, trust com- 
pany, or trust bank. 

Section 7. Be it further enacted, etc., That the provisions 
contained in the Revised Civil Code, or other laws of this State 
relative to substitutions, fidei commissa or trust depositions, shall 
not be deemed to apply to or in any manner affect donations 
made for the purpose and in the manner provided by this act, 
and all laws or parts of laws conflicting with the provisions of 
this act are repealed in so far as regards the purposes of this 
act, but not otherwise. 

ACT No. 114 OF 1918. 

To prohibit the teaching of the German language in the public 
and private elementary and high schools, colleges, univer- 
sities, and other educational institutions in the State of 
Louisiana; and to provide penalties for the violation of 
this Act. 
Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State 
of Louisiana, That it shall be unlawful for any teacher, professor, 
lecturer, person, or persons, employed in the public or private 



165 



elementary or high schools, colleges, universities, or other insti- 
tutions in the State of Louisiana that in any way form a part of 
the public or private educational system, or educational work, 
in the State of Louisiana, to teach the German language to any 
pupil or class. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., That any person violat- 
ing the provisions of this Act shall, upon conviction before any 
court of competent jurisdiction, be fined in the sum of not less 
than Twenty-Five Dollars ($25.00) and not more than One 
Hundred Dollars ($100.00), or by imprisonment for not less than 
ten (10) days or more than ninety (90) days, or both at the 
discretion of the judge. Each and every day that such person 
or persons shall violate the provisions of this Act shall be re- 
garded as a separate offense, and punishable under the foregoing 
provisions. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc., That all laws or parts 
of laws in conflict herewith are hereby repealed, and this Act 
shall take effect from and after its passage. 

ACT No. 138 OF 1918. 

Prohibiting the use of any disloyal, abusive, or disreputable 
language concerning the United States of America, or flag, 
standard, color, etc. 
Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Louis- 
iana, That if any person shall, at any time or place within this 
State, during the time the United States of America is at war 
with any other nation, use any language in the presence and 
hearing of another person, of and concerning the United States 
of America, the entry, or the continuance, of the United States 
of America in the war, or of and concerning the army, navy, or 
marine corps of the United States of America, or of and con- 
cerning any flag, standard, color, ensign, of the United States of 
America, or any imitation thereof, or the uniform of any officer 
of the army of the United States of America, which language is 
disloyal to the United States of America, or abusive in character, 
and calculated to bring into disrepute the United States of 
America, the entry, or continuance, of the United States of 



166 



America in the war, the army, navy, marine corps of the United 
States of America, or any flag, standard, color, or ensign of the 
United States of America, or any imitation thereof, or the flag, 
color, standard, or ensign, or the uniform of any officer of the 
army of the United States of America, or is of such nature as to 
be reasonably calculated to provoke a breach of the peace, is if 
said in the presence and hearing of a citizen of the United States 
of America, shall be decreed guilty of a crime, and shall be 
punished with or without hard labor in the State Penitentiary for 
any period of time not more than flve years, or by a fine of not 
less than Fifty Dollars nor more than Five Thousand Dollars. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc.. That any person who 
shall, at any time and place within this State during the time 
the United States is at war with any other nation, or nations, 
commit to writing or printing, or both writing and printing, by 
letters, words, signs, figures, or any other manner, and in any 
language, anything of and concerning the United States, the 
entr}^ or continuance of the United States in the war, or of and 
concerning the army, navy, or marine corps of the United States, 
any flag, standard, color, or ensign of the United States, or any 
imitation thereof, or uniform of any of its officers, which is 
abusive in character, or disloyal to the United States, and reason- 
ably calculated to bring into disrepute the United States, or the 
entry, or continuance, of the United States in the war, the army, 
navy, or marine corps of the United States, any flag, standard, 
color, or ensign of the United States, or that of any of its officers, 
and reasonably calculated to provoke a breach of the peace if 
written to or in the presence of a citizen of the United States, 
or if said in the presence and hearing of any citizen of the 
United States shall be deemed guilty of a crime, and shall be 
punished as provided in Section 1 of this Act. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc.. That any person who 
shall, within this State, publicly or privately, mutilate, deface, 
defile, defy, tramp upon, or cause contempt upon, either by 
words or acts, any flag, standard, color, or ensign, of the United 
States, or that of any of its officers, or on any imitation of either 
of them, shall be deemed guilty of a crime, and shall be punished 
as provided in Section 1 of this Act. 



167 



Section 4. Be it further enacted, etc., That any person who, 
during- the existence of the war between the United States and 
any other nation, or nations, shall knowingly or maliciously, 
within this State, display any flag, standard, color, or ensign, 
or coat of arms of any nation with which the United States is 
at war, or any imitation thereof, or that of any State, sub- 
division, city or municipality of any such nations, shall be 
deemed guilty of a crime and shall be punished as provided in 
Section 1 of this Act. • 

Section 5. Be it further enacted, etc.. That it shall be the 
duty of any person who shall hear, see, or know of any person 
violating any of the provisions of this Act, to immediately report 
the same to some officer authorized to make arrests in such cases ; 
and it shall be the duty of said officer to forthwith cause the 
arrest of such person, or persons, against whom such charge has 
been filed, and to immediately carry him before the District 
Attorney of the parish, whose duty it shall be to thoroughly 
investigate the charges, and to file such information as may be 
necessary. 

ACT No. 141 OF 1918. 
An Act to establish the "State Colony and Training School" for 
the feeble-minded and to provide for its government, man- 
agement, control and maintenance and making an appro- 
priation therefor, providing for "the trial and conduction 
of the feeble-minded to said institution ; imposing fines and 
penalties for the violation of the provisions of this act. 
Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana that there is hereby created and established 
a charitable institution for the State of Louisiana to be known 
as the "State Colony and Training School," which is an insti- 
tution especially provided for the feeble-minded persons of the 
State of Louisiana. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., that the words "feeble- 
minded" in this Act shall be construed to mean any person 
afflicted with mental defectiveness from birth or from an early 
age, so pronounced that he is incapable of managing himself and 
his affairs, or being taught to do so, and requires supervision, 



168 



control and care for his own welfare, or for the welfare of others, 
or for the welfare of the community, who is not classified as an 
insane person within the meaning and intent of the laws of the 
State of Louisiana. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc., that from and after 
the passage of this Act no feeble-minded person shall be sent to 
any public institution for the feeble-minded except as hereinafter 
provided. 

Section 4. Be it further enacted, etc., it shall be the duty of 
the Governor of this State, to appoint a Board of Administrators 
to consist of and be composed of five persons, to be appointed 
from the State at large, of which body the Governor of Louisiana 
shall ex-officio be President, and this Board is to be known as the 
Board of Administrators of the "State Colony and Training 
School" to be situated in the Parish of East Baton Rouge, and 
said Board shall be and are hereby constituted the Board of 
Administrators of aforesaid "State Colony and Training 
School." 

Section 5. Be it further enacted, etc., the persons to be ap- 
pointed on said Board shall be citizens of the State of Louisiana ; 
the original appointments on said Board shall be one for one 
year, one for two years, one for three years, one for four years, 
and one for five years ; all subsequent appointments shall be for 
five years except to fill vafeancies, when the appointment shall be 
for the unexpired term only. 

Within sixty days after notice of their appointment by the 
Governor said Board shall meet and organize by the election of 
a Vice President, to preside in the absence of the President, a 
Secretary-Treasurer. The first meeting of the Board of Admin- 
istrators of the said "State Colony and Training School" shall 
he held at the State Capitol and thereafter shall be held at the 
domicile of the "State Colony and Training School," and the 
Parish of East Baton Rouge is hereby designated as a legal 
domicile of the ' ' State Colony and Training School. ' ' The Board 
of Administrators as hereby created shall have the right to 
cliange their domicile as provided by the general corporation 
laws of the State of Louisiana. 



169 



Section 6. Be it further enacted, etc., That the Board of 
Administrators of the ' ' State Colony and Training School ' ' shall 
have the right to locate, build, construct and maintain the said 
' ' State Colony and Training School ' ' in any Parish in the State 
of Louisiana. Said Board shall have the general control and 
direction of the said "State Colony and Training School"; it 
shall have the power to acquire by purchase, deed, gift, bequest, 
devise of lease such property, real and personal, as may be 
necessary to carry out the purpose of this Act. 

It shall have the power to erect or to have erected by contract 
or otherwise, such buildings, structures, outhouses, and to make 
such improvements on the said lands as it may deem suitable for 
the housing and training of the inmates. 

It shall have the power to engage in agricultural, industrial 
and all other pursuits of life that may be beneficial or essential 
for the institution of the inmates thereof. 

Section 7. Be it further enacted, etc., that the Board of 
Administrators shall furnish the Legislature on the second Mon- 
day of each session a detailed statement of the annual receipts 
and expenditures of said institution; a statement of the number 
and sex of the feeble-minded persons in the "State Colony and 
Training School", of the number and sex of those admitted and 
discharged ; and of those deceased during the preceding biennial 
period. 

Section 8. Be it further enacted, etc., that the Board of Ad- 
ministrators shall elect a treasurer for a period of four years, 
who shall be ex-officio secretary, and who shall not be a member 
of the Board, and who shall give bond and security for the faith- 
ful performance of his duty, to be approved by the majority of 
said Board. It shall be his duty to collect all debts due to said 
"State Colony and Training School," and to receive quarterly 
upon the warrant of the President of the Board whatever appro- 
priations may be made by the State for its benefit ; to take care 
of and keep an exact account of the property, credit and revenues 
and to make all necessary payments under such rules and regu- 
lations and restrictions as may be established by the Board. He 
shall receive such salary as may be fixed b?^ the Board. 

Section 9. Be it further enacted, etc., that said Board shall 



170 



appoint a Superintendent who, subject to sueh rules and regula- 
tions and restrictions as mar "be established by the Board, shall 
have full and complete authority in the administration of the 
said "State Colony and Training School'', "with power to employ 
and discharge all subordinate officers and employees. 

Said Superintendent shall be a person of good moral character 
and ref)utable standing and a graduate in medicine (preferably 
of hospital training and experience i. Said Superintendent shall 
be a person especially titted by training and experience for the 
duties of the position and shall be appointed to serre for an in- 
definite term subject to proper management, conduct and good 
l>ehavior; said Superintendent shall be required to reside on the 
premises of said '"State Colony and Training School""- 

Said Superintendent shall be subject to removal by the Board 
of Administrators for cause that may be deemed right and proper 
by said Board. 

Section 10. Be it further enacted, etc., that the work of erect- 
ing and equipping said "State Colony and Training School" 
shall be under the immediate superrision and general direction 
of the Board of Administrators. 

Section 11. Be it further enacted, etc., when any person 
residing in this State shall be supposed to be feeble-minded, and 
by reason of such mental condition of feeble-mindedness. and of 
social conditions, such as want of proper supervision, control, 
care and support, or other causes, it is unsafe and dangerous to 
the welfare of the community for him to be at large without 
supervision, control, and care, any relative, guardian or conser- 
vator or any reputable citizen of the Parish in which such sup- 
posed feeble-minded person resides or is found, may. by leave 
of court first had and obtained, fiile with the clerk of either the 
District court of any Parish or of the Parish court of the Parish 
in which sueh supposed feeble-minded person resides or is found, 
or with the clerk of the Civil District Court of the Parish of 
Orleans, when the supposed feeble-minded i)erson resides or is 
found in the city, a petition in writing, setting forth that the 
person therein named is feeble-minded, the fact and circum- 
stances of the social conditions, such as want of proper super- 
rision, control, care or support, or other causes, making it unsafe 



171 

or dangerous to the welfare of the community for such person to 
be at large without supervision, control or care; also the name 
and residence, or that such name or residence is unknown to the 
petitioner, or some person, if any there be, actually supervising, 
caring for or supporting such person, and of at least one person 
if any there be legally chargeable with such supervision, care 
or support, and also the names and residences or that same are 
unknown of the parent or guardians. 

Section 12, Be it further enacted, etc., the petitioner shall 
also allege whether or not such person has been examined by a 
qualified physician having personal knowledge of the condition of 
such alleged feeble-minded person. There shall be endorsed on 
such petition the names and residences of witnesses known to 
petitioner by whom the truth of the allegations of the petition 
may be proved, as well as the name and the residence of a quali- 
fied physician, if any is known to the petitioner, having personal 
knowledge of the case. All persons named in such petition shall 
be made defendants by name and shall be notified of such pro- 
ceedings by summons, if residents of this State, in the same 
manner as is now or may hereafter be required by law in pro- 
ceedings in this State. 

The summons shall require all defendants to personally appear 
at the time and place stated therein, and to bring into court .the 
alleged feeble-minded person. No written answer shall be re- 
quired to the petition, but the cause shall stand for trial upon 
the petition on the return day of the summons. The summons 
shall be made returnable at any time within fifteen days after 
the date thereof, and may be served the same as summons in 
Civil proceedings and served by any officer authorized by law to 
serve processes of the court issuing suah summons. No service 
of process shall be necessary upon any of the defendants named, 
if they appear or are brought before the court personally without 
service of summons. 

Section 13. Be it further enacted, etc., upon the filing of 
the petition, or upon motion at any time thereafter, if it shall 
be made to appear to the court by evidence given under oath that 
it is for the best interests of the alleged feeble-minded person 



172 



and the community that such person be at once taken into 
custody, or that the service of summons will be ineffectual to 
secure the presence of such person, a warrant may issue on the 
order of the court, directing that such person be taken into 
custody and brought before the court forthwith or at such time 
and place the judge may appoint, and pending the hearing of 
the petition, the court may make any order for the detention of 
such feeble-minded person, or the placing of such feeble-minded 
person under temporary guardianship of some suitable person, 
on such person entering into a recognizance for his appearance, 
as the court shall deem proper. But no such alleged feeble- 
minded person shall, during the pendency of the hearing of the 
petition, be detained in any place provided for the detention 
of persons charged with or convicted of any criminal or quasi- 
criminal offense. 

Section 14. Be it further enacted, etc.. At any time after the 
filing of the petition and pending the final disposition of the case, 
the court may continue the hearing from time to time, and may 
order such alleged feeble-minded person to submit to the exami- 
nation of some qualified physician or psychologist, and the court 
may also require by rule or order that the petitioner answer 
under oath such interrogatories as may be propounded, in a form 
to be prescribed by the Board of Administrators. 

The hearing on the petition shall be by the court and the 
commission to be appointed by the court, of two qualified physi- 
cians or one qualified physician and one qualified psychologist, 
residents of the Parish, to be selected by the judge on account of 
their known competency and integrity, and evidence shall be 
heard and proceedings had as in any other civil proceedings. 

Evidence shall also be heard and inquiry made into the social 
conditions, such as want of proper supervision, control, care or 
support, and other causes making it unsafe or dangerous to the 
welfare of the community for such person to be at large, without 
supervision, control and care. The commission shall also make 
a personal examination touching the mental condition of the 
alleged feeble-minded person. Upon the conclusion of the hear- 
ing, inquiry and examination, the commission shall file with the 



173 



clerk of the court a report in writing, showing the result of their 
examination of the mental condition and social conditions afore- 
said, setting forth their conclusions and recommendations, and 
shall also file with such report their sworn answers to such inter- 
rogatories as may be propounded in a form to be prescribed by 
the Board of Administrators. Such answers may be based upon 
their best knowledge and belief. 

Section 15. Be it further enacted, etc., If the court shall find 
such alleged feeble-minded person not to be feeble-minded as 
defined in this Act, he shall order the petition dismissed and the 
person discharged. If the court shall find such alleged feeble- 
minded person to be feeble-minded, and subject to be dealt with 
under this Act, having due regard to all circumstances appear- 
ing on the hearing, the. guiding and controlling thought of the 
court throughout the proceedings to be the welfare of the feeble- 
minded person and the welfare of the community, it shall enter a 
decree, appointing a suitable person to be the guardian of the 
person of such feeble-minded person, or directing that such 
feeble-minded person be sent to a private institution qualified 
and licensed under the laws of the State to receive such person 
whose managers are willing to receive him or may direct that he 
be placed in a public institution for the feeble-minded and such 
decree so entered shall stand and continue binding upon all 
persons whom it may concern until rescinded or otherwise 
regularly superseded or set aside. 

Section 16. Be it further enacted, etc., That upon the entry 
of an order directing that a feeble-minded person be sent to an 
institution for feeble-minded persons, the clerk of the court shall 
send a copy of the order to the Superintendent of the institution 
to which such feeble-minded person is ordered to be sent, and 
such Superintendent shall receive such feeble-minded person as 
a charge in such institution ; provided, that if On account of the 
crowded condition of a public institution it is impossible to 
accommodate such feeble-minded person, the Superintendent 
shall inform the court with the premise that the court be notified 
at once when the next vacancy occurs, and that such feeble- 
minded person be then received as a charge in such public insti- 
tution. 



174 



Section 17. Be it further enacted, etc., That for the convey- 
ance of any feeble-minded person to any public or private insti- 
tution for the feeble-minded, admission thereto having been 
ordered by the court as herein provided, the clerk shall issue a 
warrant in duplicate directed to the petitioner, or to some suit- 
able reputable person, as the judge may select, commanding him 
to take such feeble-minded person and deliver him to the Super- 
intendent of the institution. When the judge thinks necessary, 
he may direct the clerk to authorize the employment of one or 
more a.ssistants, but no feeble-minded female shall be taken to the 
institution by any male person not her husband, father, brother 
or son, without the attendance of some woman of good character 
and mature age, chosen for the purpose by the judge. Upon 
receiving the feeble-minded person, the Superintendent of the 
institution shall endorse upon the warrant his receipt, naming 
the person or persons from whom the feeble-minded person is 
received, and one copy of the warrant so endorsed shall be re- 
turned to the clerk of the court to be filed with the other papers 
in the case, and the other shall be left with the Superintendent 
and the person delivering the feeble-minded person shall endorse 
thereon that he has so delivered him, and said duplicate warrant 
shall be prima facie evidence of the facts set forth therein and in 
said endorsement. 

Section 18. Be it further enacted, etc., that all persons feeble- 
minded committed to said institution pursuant to an order of 
court as herein provided, may petition the court that entered 
the order of admission to discharge the feeble-minded person, or 
to vary the order of the court sending the feeble-minded person 
to an institution. If, on the hearing of the petition, the court is 
satisfied that the welfare of the feeble-minded person, or the 
Avelfare of others, or the welfare of the community requires a 
discharge or a variation of the order, the court may so order a 
discharge or a variation of the order. Discharges and variations 
of orders may be made for either of the following causes : because 
the person adjudged to be feeble-minded is not feeble-minded; 
because he has so far improved as to be capable of caring for 
himself; because the relatives or friends of the feeble-minded 



175 



person are able and willing to supervise control, care for and 
support him and request his discharge. 

Before rendering an order of alteration or dismissal it will be 
the duty of the court to have a thorough examination and report 
made touching upon the condition of the feeble-minded. 

Section 19. Be it further enacted, etc., every person admitted 
to any institution for the feeble-minded shall have all reasonable 
opportunity and facility for communication with his friends 
and be permitted to write and send letters, providing they con- 
tain nothing of an immoral or personally offensive character and 
letters written by any charge to any member of the Board of 
Administrators, or to any State or Parish official, shall be for- 
warded unopened. But no leave of absence shall be granted 
except for good cause to be determined and approved by the 
Board of Administrators in each case who shall take appropriate 
measures to secure for the feeble-minded person proper super- 
vision, control and care during such leave of absence, and no 
leave of absence shall be for a longer period than two weeks in 
one calendar year. 

Section 20. Be it further enacted, etc.. Any person who shall 
knowingly contrive, or who shall conspire to have any person 
adjudged feeble-minded ijnder this Act, unlawfully and im- 
properly, or any person who shall violate any provision of this 
Act, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon convic- 
tion thereof shall be fined not exceeding $1,000, or imprisoned 
not exceeding one year, or both, at the discretion of the court in 
which such conviction is had. 

Section 21. Be it further enacted, etc., That if any person 
shall abduct or seduce any inmate to elope or escape from said 
"State Colony and Training School" or shall attempt to do so, 
or shall aid or assist therein, every such person shall upon con- 
viction thereof, be condemned to pay a fine of not less than fifty 
nor more than five hundred dollars, for the use of said "State 
Colony and Training School", and at the discretion of the court 
be imprisoned in the Parish jail for a term not exceeding six 
months. 

Section 22. Be it further enacted, etc.. That for the carrying 



176 



out of the provisions of this Act, the sum of Twenty -five Thousand 
($25,000) Dollars is hereby appropriated, out of any money in 
the State Treasury not otherwise appropriated for the year end- 
ing June 30, 1919. 

Section 23. Be it further enacted, etc.. That all laws or parts 
of laws inconsistent herewith or in conflict with be and the same 
are hereby repealed. 

Section 24. Be it further enacted, etc., ■ That this Act shall 
take effect and be in force from the date after its passage and 
approval by the Governor. 

ACT No. 143 OF 1918. 

An Act to provide for the establishment, administration, and 

conduct of the Louisiana State Home for Girls, for the 

reformation, correction, and education of females in the 

State of Louisiana, between the ages of eight and eighteen 

years, who may be declared delinquent, abandoned, or 

derelict by a court of competent jurisdiction ; and repealing 

all laws or parts of laws in conflict herewith. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 

State of Louisiana, That there is hereby established a Louisiana 

State Home for Girls, subject to the. regulations and provisions 

hereinafter prescribed. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the Louisiana 
State Board of Education shall be and is hereby made the gov- 
erning authority of the Louisiana State Home for Girls. The 
said Board is hereby empowered and authorized (1) to select a 
convenient and suitable site for this institution; (2) to acquire 
lands, buildings, and equipment by purchase, donations, or other- 
wise; (3) to receive donations, bequests, or legacies in the form 
of money for buildings or maintenance of the said institution; 
(4) to erect all necessary buildings, provide the required equip- 
ment, and acquire such property as may be essential to the insti- 
tution; (5) and to make all necessary rules and regulations for 
the administration of the said institution, and for ihe proper 
conduct of the same. It shall be authorized to confirm the ap- 
pointments of all employees of the Superintendent of said insti- 



177 

tution and fix their salaries. It shall be the duty of said State 
Board of Education to elect a Superintendent of the Louisiana 
State Home for Girls, who shall be a woman of high character, 
business ability, and practical education, fitting her as the head 
of said reformatory institution. The said Board shall receive no 
additional compensation for administering the affairs of the said 
Louisiana State Home for Girls, other than the mileage and per 
diem allowed members in actual attendance upon the meetings 
of the said Board. It shall make biennial reports to the Governor 
of the State and the General Assembly of the State of Louisiana 
in the month of April in the year in which the General Assembly 
convenes, said reports to cover all data, financial statements, and 
a full review of the progress and operation of said institution. 

The ownership of all property and the appurtenances con- 
nected with this institution shall be vested in the State of Louis- 
iana, the Governor being hereby authorized to accept title to 
the same. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the Superintend- 
ent of the Louisiana State Home for Girls shall be the manager 
of the said state institution; she shall have full charge of the 
discipline and the conduct of the inmates and employees under 
her charge : and she shall see to it that all proper rules and 
regulations are duly enforced: Under the direction of the State 
Board of Education, she shall provide a course of study and a 
system of education and reformation for the delinquent, aban- 
doned, or derelict girls under her charge ; and, under the super- 
vision and by the advice and consent of the said State Board of 
Education, she shall employ all necessary assistants and such 
help as may be required by said institution. 

Section 4. Be it further enacted, etc.. That all girls in the 
State of Louisiana, between the ages of eight and eighteen years, 
who may be declared delinquent, abandoned, or derelict by a 
court of competent jurisdiction, may, at the discretion of the 
iiTdsre of said court, be confined in the Louisiana State Home for 
Girls for such term and under such conditions as may be author- 
ized by the existing laws covering juvenile delinquency. 

Section 5. Be it further enacted, etc., That when the Louis- 



178 



iana State Home for Girls shall have been completed and estab- 
lished as provided for in the foregoing Sections of this Act, it 
shall be the duty of the Superintendent of Public Education of 
the State of Louisiana to give ten days public notice of the same, 
at the expiration of which time of notice the provisions of this 
Act shall become effective. 

Section 6. Be it further enacted, etc., That all laws or parts 
of laws in conflict with the provisions of this Act be and the 
same are hereby repealed. 

ACT No. 157 OF 1918. 
(Gambling Prohibited Within Five Miles of Winnsboro High School.) 

An Act to prohibit gambling with cards or dice or any form of 

banking game, for money or the representative thereof, 

within five (5) miles of Winnsboro High School, located at 

"Winnsboro, La., and to prescribe a penalty for the violation 

hereof, due notice of the introduction of this bill having 

been given in accordance with the provisions of Art. 50 of 

the Constitution of Louisiana of 1913. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 

State of Louisiana: That gambling with cards, dice and all 

manner of banking games or gambling in any form whatsoever 

for money or the representative thereof within five (5) miles of 

Winnsboro High School, located at Winnsboro, La., be and the 

same is hereby prohibited. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc.. That any person who 
violates Sec. 1 of this act shall be deemed guilty of a misde- 
meanor and on conviction shall be fined in the sum of not less 
than Fifty ($50.00) Dollars nor more than One Hundred 
($100.00) Dollars or shall be imprisoned not less than one month 
nor more than four months, or both fine and imprisonment at 
the discretion of the court. 

ACT No. 169 OF 1918. 
(Misdemeanor for Parents, etc., to Neglect Children.) 

An Act for the protection of children under seventeen years of 
age, declaring it to be a misdemeanor for any person over 
the age of seventeen years, not a parent, guardian, or 



179 

custodian of such child, to contribute to the neglect, de- 
pendency or delinquency of such children, defining and 
setting forth the facts and causes that constitute such mis- 
demeanor on the part of such person over the age of seven- 
teen years, and providing a penalty therefor. 
Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State 
of Louisiana : That any person over the age of seventeen years, 
other than parents, tutors, guardians or other persons having 
the custody or control of a child under the age of seventeen 
years, who knowingly or wilfully is responsible for, encourages, 
aids, causes, or connives at, or who knowingly or wilfully does 
any act or acts to produce, promote or contribute to the condi- 
tions which cause any child under the age of seventeen years to 
be adjudged guity of juvenile delinquency, or to be in need of 
the protection and care of the State of Louisiana as defined by 
statute or by Article 118 of the Constitution of Louisiana, or 
cause such child to do any of the acts constituting delinquency 
as defined by statute or the Constitution, shall be guilty of a 
misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not 
more than two hundred dollars, or be imprisoned in the parish 
jail or prison for not more than one year, or both, in the dis- 
cretion of the court. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc.. That all laws or parts 
of laws in conflict with this act be and the same are hereby 
repealed; but nothing in this act shall be construed as in any 
way repealing Act 139 of the General Assembly of the State of 
Louisiana for the year 1916. 

ACT No. 173 OF 1918. 
(Institutions of Learning Authorized to Grant Diplomas.) 

An Act to authorize institutions of learning to confer degrees; 

and repealing all laws and parts of laws in conflict with 

this Act. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 

State of Louisiana, That the governing authorities of institutions 

of learning in Louisiana offering courses of study extending four 

years of not fewer than one hundred eighty school days above 



180 



and beyond graduation from an approved high school, be and 
are hereby authorized to confer the degree of bachelor of arts 
or science on candidates that have satisfactorily completed such 
courses. 

ACT No. 206 OF 1918. 
(Prohibiting Gambling Within Five iViiles of the Castor High School.) 

An Act to prohibit gambling with cards, dice, any manner of 
betting games or gambling in any form whatever for money 
or any representative of money or any thing of value with- 
in five miles of the Castor High School in the Village of 
Castor, Public School District No. 11, "Ward 5, Bienville 
Parish, Louisiana, and to provide penalties for the violation 
of this Act, due notice of this Act having Been published as 
required by Article 50 of the Constitution of Louisiana. 
Section 1. Be it enacted, by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, that gambling with cards, dice, any manner 
of betting games or gambling in any form whatever for money 
or any representative of money, or any thing of value, within 
five miles of the Castor High School, located in the Village of 
Castor, Public School District No. 11, Ward 5, Bienville Parish, 
Louisiana, is hereby made a misdemeanor and prohibited, and 
any person violating this Act shall upon conviction by or before 
any court of competent jurisdiction, be fined in a sum not less 
than Ten ($10.00) Dollars nor more than One Hundred ($100.00) 
or be imprisoned not less than ten (10) days nor more than 
thirty (30) days, or be both fined and imprisoned as above pro- 
vided, at the discretion of the Court. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc.. That this Act shall take 
effect from and after its passage and promulgation. 

ACT No. 211 OF 1918. 

An Act to amend and re-enact Sections Ten (10), Twelve (12), 
Thirteen (13) and Fifteen (15) of Act 140 of the Regular 
Session of 1916, approved July 5, 1916, entitled: "An Act 
to carry out Articles 225 and 326 of the Constitution; to 
create a Board of State Affairs; to prescribe its powers, 



181 ■ 



duties and compensation; to provide penalties; to abolish 
the State Board of Appraisers and State Board of Equali- 
' zation; to provide an appropriation;" providing that the 
actual cash value fixed by the Board of State Affairs for 
State assessment purposes shall be the actual cash value for 
all other purposes; providing for the separate assessment 
of improved and unimproved property and improvements ; 
requiring that any official holding office under the laws of 
the State of Louisiana shall furnish information required 
by the Board of State Affairs; providing penalties for 
failure to comply with any of the provisions of this Act; 
providing for the repeal of part of Section 13 ; and provid- 
ing that assessors shall perform certain duties and shall not 
be permitted to file their rolls with the sheriff until given 
authority to do so by the Board of State Affairs. 
Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, That Section 10 of Act 140, approved July 5, 
1916, be amended and re-enacted so as to read as follows : 

Section 10. Be it further enacted, etc.. That it shall be the 
duty of the Board, and it shall have the power and authority : 

Assessment. 

1. To assess, for State purposes, all taxable property through- 
out the State of Louisiana, as authorized and required by 
Articles 225 and 226 of the Constitution. 

2. To fix and equalize the value of said property for the 
purpose of collecting the State taxes, not to exceed its actual 
cash value; leaving to the lawful authorities of each parish or 
other subdivision levying, assessing and collecting taxes, full 
liberty to assess taxes on, and fix valuations at, less than actual 
cash valuation as they deem fit ; provided that the percentage of 
the actual cash valuation of the property assessed in any parish, 
for other than State purposes, shall not fall below twenty-five 
per cent of the actual cash valuation, as fixed by the Board for 
State purposes; provided, further, that for local purposes the 
percentage shall operate equally and uniformly on all taxable 
property within the parish or other local subdivision on the 
actual valuation fixed by the Board of State Affairs for State 
assessment purposes ; provided, that in all levee districts, drain- 



182 



age districts, or other special taxing districts extending over 
more than one parish, said levee taxes, drainage taxes, or other 
special taxes shall he assessed and collected on the percentage of 
actual cash value fixed by the Board of State Affairs for State 
assessment purposes; provided, further, that the actual cash 
valuation and assessment of railway, telegraph, telephone, sleep- 
ing car and express business throughout the State of Louisiana, 
or other property heretofore assessed by the State Board of 
Appraisers, shall be fixed and assessed by this Board for all 
purposes. 

3. To require the assessors to make up assessment rolls in a 
formal manner, and according to a method to be prescribed by 
the Board; to require the separate valuation and assessment of 
improved and unimproved property and the improvements there- 
on ; and to deliver to the Board for examination one of the three 
copies prescribed by law to be made by them, or an abstract 
thereof, as it may deem fit ; to fix the time when the assessor shall 
close his books, and deliver said roll, assessment sheets or abstract 
to the State Board ; to require the assessor to take an oath in a 
form to be prescribed by the Board declaring that he has com- 
plied with the instructions of the Board; to require that all 
assessors shall secure the approval of the Board of State Affairs 
before filing their assessment rolls with the tax collector, and to 
instruct all tax collectors not to receive from the assessor any 
assessment roll or collect any taxes thereon without the written 
consent of the Board of State Affairs. 

4. To require the assessors to extend on the roll the actual 
valuation of property as fixed by the Board, either by classes 
or in particular instances, and to extend thereon the percentage 
of such valuation upon which the State taxes shall be collected. 

5. To confer with and advise the assessors about valuation 
of property, for other than State purposes, when requested by 
them. 

6. To require of assessors all data and reasons governing 
them in fixing valuations, and, if necessary, that any assessor 
shall appear before the Board at its domicile, or elsewhere, or 
before any member, or person authorized to represent the Board 
elsewhere ; provided that the Board shall pay the actual sworn 



183 



and itemized expenses of any assessor required to appear outside 
of his parish. 

7. To publicly reprimand any assessor if it shall appear that 
he is wilfully negligent or unfair in the assessment of property, 
or in omitting same from the rolls, and if said Board shall deem 
it necessary, to institute removal proceedings through the At- 
torney General, and according to law, for gross misconduct in 
office. 

8. To prescribe the form in which tax receipts may be made 
out. 

9. To require assessors to place on the rolls at any time before 
filing them with the tax collector, and to require the same duty 
of the tax collector after said filing, any property omitted, and 
to extend the same for the current and back taxes, on the 
valuation fixed by the State Board, for other property of like 
kind, and at the percentage of such valuation for other than 
State purposes. 

10. To require any person holding office under the Constitu- 
tion or laws of the State of Louisiana to furnish any information 
in his or her possession or under his or her control relating to the 
existence, location or value of any property, which would assist 
or instruct the Board in locating same and arriving at its true 
value. 

11. To fix the time when the assessor shall conclude listing 
property and fixing valuations, and when he shall place the same 
before the police jury as a board of reviewers, and when the 
police jury shall meet as a board of reviewers; provided, such 
time shall be uniform throughout the State and provided that 
all notices required by law shall be issued to all concerned for 
the examination of rolls by the taxpayers, or for consideration 
by the parish board of reviewers, shall not be abridged ; nor shall 
the proceedings thereupon or thereafter be altered without due 
notice; provided, further, that if the State Board shall change 
such dates as now fixed by law, special notice thereof shall be 
given by the proper authorities in addition to the usual notice, 
in a form to be prepared by the Board. 

12. To require the assessors to forward the State Board all 



184 

matter and data heretofore required to be forwarded to the State 
Board of Equalization, and such other data as it may deem 
necessary, except as the State Board may excuse such service or 
duty as not promoting the end contemplated by this Act ; and to 
require the assessors to perform all duties required by law here- 
tofore to be performed under the direction of the State Board 
of Equalization, except as the same may be inconsistent herewith, 
or excused as aforesaid. 

13. To fix the percentage of the actual cash valuation upon 
which the State taxes must be collected after the actual cash 
valuation for the whole State has been fixed, in order to realize 
necessary revenues, according to legislative appropriation, never 
to exceed such appropriation, making allowances for a proper 
percentage in the failure of collections ; provided that there shall 
be first deducted from the total amount of the legislative appro- 
priation income from all sources other than property taxation, 
and the tax on property shall not exceed the amount thus to be 
raised. 

14. To require individuals, partners, companies, associations 
and corporations engaged in railway, telegraph, telephone, sleep- 
ing car and express business, or in any transportation business to 
furnish information concerning their capital, funded or other 
debt, current assets and liabilities, value of property, earnings, 
operating and other expenses, taxes and all other facts which 
may be needful to enable the Board to ascertain the value and 
the relative burdens borne by all kinds of property in the State, 
according to such forms as shall be prescribed by the Board, and 
at such time as it may fix; and, further, to require individuals, 
'companies, partnerships and corporations to make reports to the 
Board, giving trial balances, a full and complete description of 
all taxable property owned, its cost, its age, the value at which 
it is carried on the books, and such other information as the 
Board may require in the form and at the time to be prescribed 
by the Board, except that no individual, corporation or partner- 
fehip shall be required to give his gross or net earnings, the 
amount of expenses incurred or any salaries paid ; provided, that 
all such reports shall be considered confidential, shall be used by 



185 



the Board only for the purpose of securing a correct assessment 
and shall not be subject to inspection by the public. 

15. To examine carefully into all cases where evasion or vio- 
lation of the laws for assessment and taxation of property is 
alleged, complained of or discovered, and to ascertain wherein 
existing laws are defective or are improperly or negligently 
administered. 

16. To investigate the tax systems of other States and coun- 
tries and to formulate and recommend such legislation as may 
be deemed expedient to prevent evasion of assessment and secure 
just and equal taxation. 

17. To transmit to the Governor and to each member of the 
General Assembly, not less than thirty days before the meeting 
of the Legislature, a communication with reference to showing, 
in an abbreviated, clear and concise form such facts drawn from 
the Board's general report, as might be instructive to the mem- 
bers in regard to existing conditions or needefl legislation. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., That Section 12 of Act 
140, approved July 5, 1916, be amended and re-enacted so as to 
read as follows : 

Section 12. Be it further enacted, etc.. That any person or 
persons who shall disobey any order of said Board or fail or 
refuse to comply with any request of said Board issued or made 
under the authority of any section of this act, or who shall dis- 
obey any subpoena ducas tecum, or refuse to testify when re- 
quested to do so by said Board, either orally or by commission, 
shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction 
thereof, 'shall for each offense be fined in the sum of not less than 
fifty dollars nor more than one hundred dollars, or be confined 
in jail for not exceeding thirty days, or both, at the discretion 
of the court. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc., That Section 13 of 
Act 140, approved July 5, 1916, be amended and re-enacted 
so as to read as follows: 

Section 13. Be it further enacted, etc., That the actual cash 
value of all property fixed by the Board of State Aifairs for 
State assessment purposes shall be the actual cash value for all 



186 

purposes; provided, that any taxpayer shall have the right to 
test the question of the actual cash value of his property before 
the courts of the State. 

Section 4. Be it further enacted, etc., That Section 15 of Act 
140, approved July 5, 1916, be amended and re-enacted so as to 
read as follows : 

Section 15. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the police jury 
sitting- as a Board of Reviewers for the parish assessraents, shall 
likewise sit as a Board of Reviewers on the assessment for State 
purposes on all property not heretofore assessed by the State 
Board of Appraisers; and the said Board of Reviewers shall 
consider objections and complaints brought before it by tax- 
payers or their representatives, in respect to the actual cash 
valuation fixed by the State Board, and shall determine whether 
the actual cash valuation of property, as fixed by the State 
Board, is too high. In any case where the Board of Reviewers 
may determine tlfat the amount of actual cash valuation fixed by 
the State Board is too high, it shall cause a record thereof to be 
made by the- clerk of the said police jury and certified to by him, 
assigning reasons for its determination and forward to the State 
Board such records and reasons, in a form to be prescribed and 
at the time fixed by the State Board, and the State Board shall 
review the same. If the State Board shall cause its original 
valuation to be reduced by reason thereof, the assessor shall 
change such original valuation in accordance with the direction 
of the State Board; and the State Board shall pay the cost of 
causing the recommendations made by the parish Board of 
Reviewers to be made up and transmitted to said Stat6 Board, 
according to a scale to be fixed by the State Board. If the State 
Board refuses to reduce said assessment, the cost of making up 
and transmitting the recommendation of the parish board of 
reviewers shall be paid by the taxpayer making complaint, unless 
the taxpayer is thereafter sustained by the courts in a suit 
brought by him ; and the clerk of the police jury shall have his 
action therefor in a court of competent jurisdiction in the parish 
where the property is located. The said State Board may, at its 
discretion, require that a sufficient deposit be made by the com- 



187 

plaining taxpayer to cover such costs in the event the parish 
Board of Reviewers shall determine to make recommendation of 
reduction to the State Board ; such deposit not to exceed, in any 
case, the sum of two dollars, or an amount less than same 
required by the clerk of the police jury, upon consideration of 
the cost at a scale of prices to be fixed by the said State Board. 
The parish Board of Reviewers, of its own initiative or upon the 
complaint of taxpayers, may oppose the actual cash valuation 
fixed by the State Board upon any class of property as such, in 
which event it shall pass resolutions describing such property 
and setting forth its reasons, which shall be forwarded to the 
State Board at the time prescribed by it at the cost of the police 
jury, unless the valuation fixed by the State Board is altered, in 
which event such cost shall be paid by said Board ; provided that 
all appeals to the State Board shall be determined on or before 
October 1st, and complaining interests shall have to November 
1st, to resort to the courts for remedy, after which they shall 
not have such right. 

ACT No. 220 OF 1918. 

An Act to prevent and punish the desecration, mutilation or 

improper use of the flag of the United States of America, 

and of this State, and of any flag, standard, color, ensign 

or shield authorized by law, and to make uniform the laws 

adopting same. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 

State of Louisiana ; That the words flag, standard, color, ensign 

or. shield, as used in this act, shall include any flag, standard, 

color, ensign or shield, or copy, picture or representation thereof, 

made of any substance or represented or produced thereon, and 

of any size, evidently purporting to be such flag, standard, color, 

ensign or shield of the United States or of this State, or a copy, 

picture or representation thereof. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., That no person shall, in 
any manner, for exhibition or display: 

(a) place or cause to be placed any word, figure, mark, pic- 
ture, design, drawing or advertisement of any nature upon any 
flag, standard, color, ensign or shield of the United States or of 



188 



this State, or authorized by any law of the United States or of 
this State; or 

(b) expose to public view any such flag, standard, color, 
ensign or shield upon which have been printed, painted or other- 
wise produced, or to which shall have been attached, appended, 
affixed or annexed any such word, figure, mark, picture, design, 
drawing or advertisement; or 

(c) expose to public view for sale, manufacture, or otherwise, 
or to sell, give or haye in possession for sale, for gift or for use 
for any purpose, any substance, being an article of merchandise, 
or receptacle, or thing for holding or carrying merchandise, upon 
or to which shall have been produced or attached any such flag, 
standard, color, ensign or shield, in order to advertise, call atten- 
tion to, decorate, mark or distinguish such article or substance. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc.. That no person shall 
publicly mutilate, deface, defile, defy, trample upon, or by word 
or act cast contempt upon any such flag, standard, color, ensign 
or shield. 

Section 4. Be it further enacted, etc.. That this statute shall 
not apply to any act permitted by the Statutes of the United 
States (or of this State), or by the United States Army and 
Navy regulations, nor shall it apply to any printed or written 
document or production, stationery, ornament, picture or jewelry 
whereon shall be depicted said flag, standard, color, ensign or 
shield with no design or words thereon and disconnected with 
any advertisement. 

Section 5. Be it further enacted, etc., That any violation of 
Section Two of this act shall be a misdemeanor and punishable 
by a fine of not more than ten dollars. Any violation of section 
Three of this act shall be a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of 
not more than twenty-five dollars, or by imprisonment for not 
more than thirty days, or by both fine and imprisonment, in the 
discretion of the Court. 

Section 6. Be it further enacted, etc.. That all laws and parts 
of laws in conflict herewith are hereby repealed. 

Section 7. Be it further enacted, etc., That this act shall be 
so construed as to effectuate its general purpose and to make 
uniform the laws of the states which enact it. 



189 



Section 8. Be it further enacted, etc., That this act may be 
cited as the Uniform Flag Law. 

Section 9. Be it further enacted, etc.. That this act shall take 
effect on and after September 1st, 1918. 

ACT No. 3, (Extra Session, 1918.) 
(Appropriation for Various Institutions.) 

To make appropriations for the Louisiana Training Institute at 
Monroe, East Louisiana Hospital for the Insane at Jackson, 
Louisiana Hospital for Insane at Pineville, Charity Hos- 
pital at New Orleans, Charity Hospital at Shreveport, 
Lepers Home in Iberville Parish, School for "the Deaf at 
Baton Rouge, and School for the Blind at Baton Rouge, 
the said appropriations to be made out of the proceeds of 
one-third of the three-fourths of a mill provided for in 
Act No. 233, being House Bill No. 395 of the regular 
session of the General Assembly of the State of Louisiana 
for the year 1918. 

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Louis- 
iana, That, in order fully to explain and interpret the intention 
of Act No. 233 of the General Assembly of the State of Louisiana 
for the year 1918, on the matters herein considered, there is 
hereby appropriated the following amounts to the said institu- 
tions hereinbelow listed: 

Louisiana Training Institute at Monroe, Sixty thousand dol- 
lars, ($60,000.00). 

•East Louisiana Hospital for the Insane at Jackson, Thirty 
thousand dollars, ($30,000.00). 

Louisiana Hospital for Insane at Pineville, Thirty thousand 
dollars, ($30,000.00). 

Charity Hospital at New Orleans, Fifteen thousand dollars, 
($15,000.00). 

Charity Hospital at Shreveport, Fifteen thousand dollars, 
($15,000.00). 

Lepers Home in Iberville Parish, Ten thousand dollars, 
($10,000.00). 



190 

School for the Deaf at Baton Rouge, Eighteen thousand dol- 
lars, ($18,000.00). 

School for the Blind at Baton Rouge, Two thousand dollars, 
($2,000.00). 

The said appropriations are to be paid out of one-third of 
the three-fourths of a mill provided for in the said Act No. 233 
of the General Assembly of the State of Louisiana for 1918, and 
shall be used for improvements and such necessary support and 
maintenance as these proposed improvements may require at the 
said charitable and educational institutions, in addition to the 
amounts heretofore appropriated for the said institutions by 
Act No. 125 of 1918. Any surplus over and above the amounts 
hereinabove appropriated out of the said tax shall be placed to 
the credit of the General Fund. 

ACT No. 20, (Extra Session, 1918.) 

An Act to carry into effect Article 229 of the Constitution of 
1898, as amended at the election in November, 1910, by 
levying an annual license tax upon all persons, firms, cor- 
porations or associations of persons engaged in the business 
of severing natural products from the soil, as timber, tur- 
pentine, and minerals, including oil, gas, sulphur, and salt ; 
and prescribing the method of collecting the license; re- 
quiring all those engaged in the severance of, and dealing 
in, such products to make reports of their business; to 
provide for the distribution of funds arising from this act ; 
to provide for their expenditure under the direction of 
certain boards herein created; to provide penalties; and 
to repeal all laws in conflict herewith. 
Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, That there is hereby levied a license tax for 
the year 1918 and for each subsequent year, upon each person 
or association of persons, firms, or corporations pursuing the 
business of severing natural products, including all forms of 
timber, turpentine, and minerals, including oil, gas, sulphur, and 
salt, from the soil ; to be collected quarterly by the Tax Collectors 
as hereinafter set forth, the license for, each quarter to be based 
on the amount severed in the preceding quarter. 



191 



Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., That every such person, 
firm, association of persons, or corporation engaged within the 
state in the business of severing timber, turpentine, oil, gas, 
sulphur, and salt from the soil shall, within thirty days after the 
expiration of each quarter-annual period expiring respectively 
on the last day of March, June, September, and December of 
each year, file with the Department of Conservation a statement 
under oath, on forms prescribed by it, of the business conducted 
by such person, firm, association, or corporation during the last 
preceding quarter-annual period, showing the nature of the 
natural products so produced, and the gross amount thereof, the 
actual cash value thereof, and any such information pertaining 
thereto as the Department of Conservation may require, and in 
the case of a mine or oil or gas well, including sulphur and salt, 
showing their location and showing the location also of each saw- 
mill, timber camp, or turpentine camp, or of each mine or farm, 
tract or lot of land upon which the wells that are actually pro- 
ducing oil, sulphur, salt, or other minerals are located; also 
giving the number of actually producing gas wells on each farm, 
or tract or lot from which said person, firm, association, or cor- 
poration is selling gas, either for domestic use, manufacturing 
purposes, or making a business of selling it for any purpose 
whatever. At the time of rendering the said report the said 
person, firm, association, or corporation shall at the same time 
pay to the Tax Collector of the parish where said product is 
taken or severed from the soil, a license to operate in each suc- 
ceeding quarter, fixed upon the amount of production of the 
preceding quarter, as follows: 

Two and one-half (2I/2) cents per one thousand (1,000) feet 
for severing the pine timber; three (3) cents per one thousand 
(1,000) feet for severing oak and ash timber; four (4) cents per 
one thousand (1,000) feet for severing cypress timber; two (2) 
cents per one thousand (1,000) feet for severing all other kinds 
of timber; three-fourths (%) of one (1) cent per barrel for 
severing oil; ten (10) cents per ton for severing sulphur; two 
(2) cents per ton for severing salt; and one (1) cent per barrel 
for severing turpentine; one-fifth (%) of one (1) mill per one 
thousand (1,000) cubic feet for severing gas. 



192 



The making of said reports and the payment of said licenses 
shall be by those actually engaged in the operation of severing, 
whether it be the owner of the soil, or a lessee who is severing 
from the soil of another, or the owner of any such resources 
severing from the soil of another. In all cases, where any timber 
is purchased after the same has been severed from the soil, the 
purchaser thereof shall made report of the amount and the name 
of the owner from whom purchased, to the Tax Collector, in order 
that the Tax Collector may collect the license from the seller of 
the timber. Such seller of the timber, after it is severed from the 
soil, shall also make report to the Tax Collector and the Depart- 
ment of Conservation, and pay the license as herein provided. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the Department 
of Conservation shall have the pov/er to require any such person, 
firm, association, or corporation engaged in severing all such 
natural products from the soil to furnish any additional in- 
formation deemed by it to be necessary for the purpose of com- 
puting the amount of said tax and for said purpose to examine 
the books, records, and files of such person, firm, association, or 
corporation; and to that end shall have power to examine wit- 
nesses, and if any such witness shall fail or refuse to appear at 
the request of the Department of Conservation, the said Depart- 
ment shall certify the facts and the name of the witness so fail- 
ing -and refusing to appear to the District Court of the state 
having jurisdiction of the party, and said court shall thereupon 
issue a commission to take testimony as of a case in which the 
Department of Conservation would be plaintiff and the party the 
defendant, addressed to any notary, and the commission to be 
performed according to the rules and practices of law governing 
the taking of testimony by commission. Whenever it shall appear 
to the Department of Conservation that any such person, firm, 
association, or corporation engaged in severing such natural 
products from the soil has unlawfully made an untrue or in- 
correct return of its gross receipts as hereinbefore provided, it 
shall ascertain the correct amount of such gross receipts and 
shalLcompute such tax on same. 

Section 4. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the tax provided 
for by this act shall become delinquent after the date fixed for 



193 



each quarter-annual report to be filed in the office of the De- 
partment of Conservation and from such time shall, as a penalty 
for such delinquency, be subject to similar penalties to those 
provided in the general license laws of this state; and the pay- 
ment of the License Tax exacted by this act shall be in addition 
to and shall not affect the liability of the parties so taxed for 
the payment of all state, municipal, district, parochial, and 
special taxes upon their real estate and other corporeal property ; 
but no other tax in addition hereto shall be imposed upon rights 
to produce in this state those things whose production is sub- 
jected to a license tax by the provisions of this act, except that 
where the police juries of the several parishes of the state are 
authorized by existing laws to levy a tax upon the business of 
severing any of the natural products affected by this act such 
police juries may continue to levy such license tax provided that 
same shall in no case exceed one-half of the amount levied herein 
for the state. 

Section 5. Be it further enacted, etc., That if any person, 
firm, association, or corporation shall fail to make a report of 
the gross production of its natural products upon which the 
license is herein provided for within the time prescribed by law 
for such report, it shall be the duty of the Department of Con- 
servation to examine the books, records, and files of any such 
person, firm, association, or corporation to ascertain the amount 
and value of such production and to compute the tax thereon as 
provided herein, and shall add thereto the cost of such exami- 
nation, together with any penalties accruing therefrom, and to 
this end it may call upon the Supervisor of Public Accounts to 
assist in such investigation. 

Section 6. Be it further enacted, etc., That when any tax 
provided for in this act shall become delinquent, the Department 
of Conservation shall issue an order directed to the Sheriff of 
any parish wherein the same or any part thereof accrued, and 
the sheriff to whom said order shall be directed shall proceed 
against the property, assets, and effects of the person, firm, asso- 
ciation, or corporation against whom said tax is assessed in the 
same manner as he is authorized by the general license law to 



194 



proceed in the collection of delinquent licenses; collecting penal- 
ties as prescribed by general laws. 

Section 7. Be it further enacted, etc., That any person who 
shall intentionally make any false oath to any report required 
by the provisions of this act shall be deemed guilty of perjury 
and shall be subject to all penalties prescribed for said crime. 

Section 8. Be it further enacted, etc.. That one-fifth (1/5) of 
all licenses herein collected from the severance of timber and 
turpentine shall be accredited to the Forestry Division of the 
Department of Conservation, and shall be expended upon the- 
warrant of the Commissioner of Conservation in the execution of 
the forestry laws, and for such purpose only ; provided that such 
Forestry Division, under the general direction of the Commis- 
sioner of Conservation, shall be superintended by a trained for- 
ester of not less than two years experience in forestry work; 
provided further that no expenditure proposed hereunder in 
executing said forestry laws by the said Commissioner of Con- 
servation shall be made except on the approval of a General 
Forestry Advisory Board, which is hereby created, and which 
shall consist of four members to be appointed by the Governor, 
and of the Commissioner of Conservation, who shall be ex-offieio 
member and chairman. Said membership shall be chosen, two 
from well-known timber owners, one from farmland owners in- 
terested in farmland reforestation, and the professor of forestry 
in the State University. The said Forestry Advisory Board shall 
meet quarterly at the domicile of the Department of Conserva- 
tion, and not oftener, except on call of the chairman, and shall 
have no salary, compensation, or per diem, but shall have actual 
traveling expenses for attendance upon such meetings. 

Section 9. Be it further enacted, etc.. That one-sixth (%) of 
all of the licenses herein collected from the severance of oil and 
gas shall be accredited to the Department of Conservation, but 
this amount shall be in excess of the amount otherwise appropri- 
ated to the Department of Conservation as its general fund, the 
said amount or so much thereof as may be necessary to be espe- 
cially dedicated to the policing, protection, and investigation of 
the oil and gas resources of the state, and to further carry into 



195 

effect the" acts of the legislature for the better protection of the 
oil and gas resources of the state, and the expense incident to the 
supervision of the collection of the license levied by this act. 

Section 10. Be it further enacted, etc., That one-fourth (^4) 
of all other licenses collected under this act shall be accredited 
to the Current School Fund for the support of the public schools ; 
that all the revenues collected under the provisions of Section 9 
of Act 145 of 1916 for the benefit of the Rural Progress Fund 
up to and including the period from January 1st to June 30, 
1918, shall be accredited to the "Rural Progress Fund" as pro- 
vided originally in Section 9 of Act 145 of 1916, and shall be 
used for the payment of any and all obligations incurred by the 
Rural Progress Board created under said Act covering the period 
above specified, and any surplus to the credit of the Rural 
Progress Fund, after the payment of all such amounts that may 
be due for obligations incurred up to June 30, 1918, shall be 
transferred to the credit of the Current School Fund and the 
General Fund equally and all functions of the Rural Progress 
Board designed by said act shall cease. The said Rural Progress 
Board, as provided originally in Section 9 of Act 145 of 1916, 
is hereby continued for the purpose of administering said funds 
as specified herein, and discharging any and all obligations that 
it might have incurred up to June 30, 1918. 

Section 11. Be it further enacted, etc., That all reports shall 
be made to the Department of Conservation instead of to the 
State Auditor as heretofore; and the Department of Conserva- 
tion shall have all the authority in respect to the supervision of 
the collection of this tax given by law to the State Auditor. 

Section 12. Be it further enacted, etc., That all laws and 
parts of laws, including Act No. 10 of 1916, Act 145 of 1916, 
Act 82 of 1918, and Act 124 of 1918, in conflict herewith, be, and 
the same are hereby repealed; provided, however, that nothing 
contained in this act shall in anywise be construed to deprive the 
state of whatever right it may have against parties subject to a 
license tax under Act 209 of 1912 and Act 10 of 1916, and the 
above said acts, and other laws; and all rights, interests, and 
titles of the state to any licenses that may be legally due under 
said Act 209 of 1912, Act 10 of 1916, and the above said acts, 



190 



and other laws, are hereby specially reserved, whether the same 
be in litigation or not ; it being the true intent and purpose of 
this act that the said Act 209 of 1912, Act 10 of 1916, and other 
laws, shall remain in full force and effect until such license shall 
become due under this present act; and no obligation that may 
be due the state for license under said Act 209 of 1912, Act 10 
of 1916, and other laws, prior to the date when this act shall go 
into effect shall in any manner be impaired; provided that all 
funds collected under this act, except as above provided, shall be 
turned into the General Fund ; provided further that if the dis- 
tribution of the funds above provided for to the Department of 
Conservation for forestry purposes, for police, protection, inves- 
tigation, and supervision of the collection of licenses, and to the 
Current School Fund, should for any reason be defeated, then 
such funds shall likewise go into the General Fund. 

ACT No. 22 OF 1918. 

An Act authorizing and empowering the Sisters of the Blessed 

Sacrament for Indians and Colored People, of Louisiana, 

conducting the Xavier University, a religious institution for 

the education of Indians and Colored People, situated in the 

Parish of Orleans, to confer degrees and grant diplomas, 

"Whereas, proper and sufficient evidence has been exhibited in 

and to the General Assembly that notice of the intention 

to apply for the passage of this Act has been published, 

; as required by Article 50 of the Constitution of the State 

of Louisiana. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 

State of Louisiana, That the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament 

for Indians and Colored People, of Louisiana, conducting the 

Xavier University, a religious institution for the education of 

Indians and Colored People, situated in the Parish of Orleans, 

and duly recognized as a body corporate, and entitled to the 

enjoyment and exercise of all the rights, duties and privileges 

appertaining to civil corporations, shall have the power and is 

hereby authorized to graduate students and to confer such 

literary honors and degrees and to grant such diplomas as are 

conferred and granted by any colleges,' universities or seminaries 



197 



of learning in the United States and Europe, to such graduates 
of said institution, or other persons as may he provided for under 
such rules and regulations, and over the signature of such 
persons as the said corporation may adopt. 

ACT No. 23 OF 1918. 

An Act authorizing and empowering St. Vincent's Academy, an 
institution for the education of young ladies, domiciled in 
the Parish of Caddo, to grant diplomas and confer degrees. 
Whereas proper and sufficient evidence has been exhibited in the 
General Assembly that notice of the intention to apply for 
the passage of this act has been published as required by 
Article 50 of the Constitution of Louisiana. 
Section 1. Be it enacted by the G-eneral Assembly of the State 
of Louisiana, that St. Vincent's Academy, an institution for the 
education of young ladies, domiciled in the Parish of Caddo, be, 
and it is hereby authorized and empowered to grant diplomas to 
its graduates and confer literary degrees, of Mistress of Art, 
Master of Art, and such other degrees as are conferred by similar 
institutions, upon their graduates and others that may be deemed 
worthy of such honors ; provided that in conferring said degrees, 
said institution shall be governed by such proper rules, regula- 
tions and forms as said institution may adopt. 

This Act shall take effect throughout the State immediately 
after its publication in the official journal. 

ACT No. 26 OF 1918. 

An Act providing for the sale or dedication or both of certain 
property standing in the Name of the City of New Orleans 
as sites for the Delgado Central Trades School and the Re- 
construction Hospital of the Benevolent and Protective 
Order of Elks of the United States of America, respectively, 
fixing the price and consideration therefor, and directing 
the dedication of the proceeds thereof as a special fund to 
be used for the embellishment and enlargement of the New 
Orleans City Park by the New Orleans City Park Im- 
provement Association. 

Whereas, public notice of the intention to apply for the passage 



198 

of this act has been published in New Orleans as required 
by Article 50 of the Constitution of the State of Louisiana, 
and evidence of such notice having been published has been 
exhibited in the General Assembly; and 

Whereas the hereinafter described two tracts of land, situated in 
the Parish of Orleans, have been selected by all parties in 
interest as sites for the location of the Delgado Central 
Trades School and the Reconstruction Hospital of the 
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks of the United 
States of America, respectively; and 

Whereas, whilst the title to the said tract stands in the name of 
the City of New Orleans, the New Orleans City Park Im- 
provement Association, a corporation duly organized under 
the laws of the State of Louisiana, has, by virtue of Act 
No. 130 of the General Assembly of' the State of Louisiana, 
approved July 9, 1896, the control, custody and manage- 
ment of said property to be used and employed for park 
purposes; and 

Whereas the New Orleans City Park Improvement Association, 
in consideration of having dedicated to it by the City of 
New Orleans, the entire proceeds of the disposition of said 
two tracts of land for the purposes aforesaid, as a special 
fund to be employed by the said New Orleans City Park 
Improvement Association for the embellishment and en- 
largement of the New Orleans City Park, is willing to 
w^aive any rights it has or may have in or to said two tracts 
of land; and 

Whereas it is proposed that title to the tract of land hereinafter 
described as a site for the location of the Reconstruction 
Hospital of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks 
of the United States of America shall be conveyed to said 
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks of the United 
States of America by the City of New Orleans by notarial 
act at private sale and for the consideration hereinafter 
stated, and that the said tract of land hereinafter described 
as a site for the location of the Delgado Central Trades 
School shall be by said City of New Orleans specially 
dedicated in perpetuity as a site on which to locate said 



199 



Delgado Central Trades School and for the consideration 
hereinafter stated; therefore, 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State 
of Louisiana, that the City of New Orleans, through and by the 
Mayor of said city, is hereby authorized to sell, cede, transfer and 
deliver, by public notarial act, and without previous advertise- 
ment or publication, to the Benevolent and Protective Order of 
Elks of the United States of America, the following described 
property, as a site for a reconstruction hospital, to-wit : 

A certain portion or tract of land, situate, lying and being in 
the Second Municipal District of the City of New Orleans, Parish 
of Orleans, formed on that portion of City Park lying west of 
Orleans Avenue, which tract of land begins at the corner of 
Orleans Avenue and City Park Avenue, extends thence in a 
northerly direction seven hundred and fifty (750) feet along the 
west side of Orleans Avenue, thence four hundred and fifty (450) 
feet in a westerly direction on a line at right angles to the west 
side of Orleans Avenue, thence southerly on a line parallel to the 
west side of Orleans Avenue eight hundred and twenty-five (825) 
feet, more or less, to an intersection with the north side line of 
City Park Avenue, thence easterly on a curved line two hundred 
and ninety-four (294) feet, more or less, to an intersection with 
the north side of City Park Avenue (formerly Old Metairie 
Road), thence easterly one hundred and sixty-nine feet, more or 
less, along the north side of City Park Avenue to the point of 
beginning: all in accordance with plan signed "W. J. Hardee, 
City Engineer," dated April 3rd, 1918, on file in the office of the 
City Engineer of the City of New Orleans. The aforesaid tract 
of land embraces 346,021 square feet, equal to 7.9435 acres. 

For and in consideration of the sum of Thirty-seven Thousand 
($37,000) Dollars cash. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the Commission 
Council of the City of New Orleans is hereby authorized by 
ordinance to dedicate in perpetuity the following described 
property, to-wit: 

A certain portion or tract of land, situate, lying and being in 
the Second Municipal District of the City of New Orleans, 



200 

Parish of Orleans, formed by a portion of City Park lying west 
of Orleans Avenue, a portion of Old Metairie Eoad, and a small 
triangle bounded by City Park Avenue, Old Metairie Eoad and 
the east side of Toulouse Street, more fully described as follows : 

Beginning at a point on the west side of Orleans Avenue, 
seven hundred and fifty (750) feet northerly from the corner of 
Orleans Avenue and City Park Avenue, thence in a northerly 
direction nine hundred and ten (910) feet along the west side 
of Orleans Avenue, to Monroe or Mound Avenue, thence fourteen 
hundred and sixty-five and forty-five one-hundredths (1465.45) 
feet along the south line of Monroe or Mound Avenue to the 
properties of the New Orleans Land Company, thence sixteen 
hundred and sixty feet in a southerly direction along the east 
line of. the properties of the New Orleans Land Company and the 
Firemen's Charitable Association to the north line of Old Metai- 
rie Eoad, thence four hundred and ten (410) feet, more or less, 
in an easterly direction along the north line of Old Metairie 
Eoad to the intersection of the prolongation of .the east side of 
Toulouse Street, thence three hundred and eighty (380) feet, 
more or less, along the east side of Toulouse Street and its 
prolongation to an intersection with the north line of City Park 
Avenue, thence easterly three hundred and fourteen (314) feet, 
more or less, along the north line of City Park Avenue, thence 
northerly eight hundred and twenty-five (825) feet, more or less, 
on a line parallel to the west side of Orleans avenue, thence 
easterly four hundred and fifty (450) feet to the point of be- 
ginning on the west side of Orleans Avenue : all in accordance 
with plan signed "W. J. Hardee, City Engineer," dated April 
3, 1918, on file in the office of the City Engineer of the City of 
New Orleans. The aforesaid tracts of land embrace 2,150,174 
square feet, equal to 49.361 acres. 

To constitute a site for the location of the Delgado Central 
Trades School, the consideration of said dedication to be the sum 
of One Hundred and Forty-one Thousand Five Hundred Dollars, 
which the Commissioner of the Department of Public Finances 
of the City of New Orleans is hereby authorized and empowered 
to pay out of such funds or moneys as he may have in his 



201 



possession to the credit of the Isaac Delgado Central Trades 
School. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc., that the sum total of 
the amounts arising from said transactions, to-wit, the sum of 
One Hundred and Seventy-eight Thousand, Five Hundred Dol- 
lars, shall by ordinance of the Commission Council of the City 
of New Orleans be specially dedicated for the embellishment and 
enlargement of said New Orleans City Park, and shall be turned 
over to the New Orleans City Park Improvement Association to 
constitute a fund to be employed by it for such purposes. 

Section 4. Be it further enacted, etc., that the New Orleans 
City Park Improvement Association shall, by resolution of its 
Board of Directors and through its president, intervene in all 
writings necessary to carry out these transactions for the purpose 
of accepting the dedication of said fund and of waiving and 
transferring such rights as it may have in said properties. 

ACT No. 40 OF 1918. 

An Act authorizing the State Board of Education of Louisiana 
to renew and extend different grades of teachers' certifi- 
cates ; fixing the fees for such renewals and extensions ; and 
repealing all laws and parts of laws in conflict. 
Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, That, in view of the scarcity of teachers and 
the difficulty of securing a sufficient number of teachers for the 
public schools, the State Board of Education of Louisiana shall 
have authority to renew and extend teachers' certificates of all 
grades for such periods as the Board may determine, all re- 
newals and extensions to be made upon satisfactory evidence that 
the holders of the certificates are worthy and competent. The 
same fees shall be paid for renewals and extensions of certificates 
as are paid by applicants for the same grades of certificates in 
examination. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., That the provisions of 
this act shall cease to be operative on July 1st, 1920. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc., That this act shall not 
repeal any existing law or laws. 



202 



ACT No. 41 OF 1918. 



An Act to empower the police juries of the several parishes to 
defray the living expenses of young men, residents of 
Louisiana, who have graduated from any high school of 
the State or high school of another State of recognized 
standing, to the number of not more than one at any one 
time from each ward of the parish, and three from the 
parish at large who agree and obligate themselves to enter 
upon the study of agriculture and to pursue such study at 
the Louisiana State University until they graduate from 
such University in agriculture and conditioned upon the 
student and his parents, or tutor, entering into a written 
contract with the parish sending such student to the Univer- 
sity, stipulating that such student will after his graduation 
in agriculture return to the parish from whence he came, 
and enter upon the actual practice of the science of agri- 
culture for a period of two years, and providing the re- 
course of the parish against the student who fails to carry 
out the provisions of his contract with the parish. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, That the police juries of the several parishes 
are empowered to defray the expenses of young men, residents 
of Louisiana, who have graduated from any high school of the 
State or high school of another State of recognized standing, to 
the number of not more than one from each ward of the parish 
at any one time, and three from the parish at large who agree 
and obligate themselves to enter upon the study of agriculture 
and to pursue such study at the Louisiana State University at 
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, until they graduate from such Univer- 
sity in agriculture. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., That as a condition 
precedent to availing themselves of the provisions of this act, it 
must be shown to the satisfaction of the police jury that the 
young man applying for aid under this act is financially unable 
to educate himself in the course of agriculture and that his 
relatives are likewise unable to render him the necessary financial 
aid to enable him to receive such an education. 



203 



Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc., That as a further con- 
dition precedent to enable any young man to avail himself of 
the provisions of this act, that he with his parents or tutor must 
enter into a contract with the parish, to be prepared by the dis- 
trict attorney, that in consideration of the aid to be rendered 
him under the provisions of this act, he will obligate himself to 
pursue his studies in agriculture at the Louisiana State Univer- 
sity until his graduation, and that after his graduation he will 
return to the parish from whence he came and practice the 
profession of an agriculturist for two years. 

Section 4.. Be it further enacted, etc.. That if any person who 
avails himself of the provisions of this act, and violates or 
breaches his contract by not remaining at the Louisiana State 
University until his graduation in agriculture ; or after having 
graduated such person fails to practice his profession as an agri- 
culturist in the parish that rendered him aid under the pro- 
visions of this act, then such breach shall cause the amount so 
expended by the parish upon said person to be a debt due and 
exigible by said person to the parish, and the parish is empow- 
ered to bring suit through the district attorney at any time with- 
in a period of five years to recover the amount of money so ad- 
vanced to such person by the parish, provided, that by a two- 
thirds vote of the membership of the police jury for good reason 
shown, the penalties provided in this section may be waived and 
avoided. 

ACT No. 43 OF 1918. 

An Act to prohibit gambling with cards, dice and all manner of 
banking games or gambling in any form whatsoever for 
money or any representative of money within four (4) 
miles of the Springfield Consolidated School, located at 
Springfield, Parish of Livingston, Louisiana, and fixing 
penalties for violation of this act. Due notice of the in,- 
tention to apply for the passage of this act having been 
published for thirty days as required by Article fifty (50) 
of the Constitution. 
Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 

State of Louisiana, That gambling with cards, dice and all 



204 



manner of banking games or gambling in any form whatsoever 
for money or any representative of money within four (4) miles 
of the Springfield Consolidated School, Parish of Livingston, 
Louisiana, be and the same is hereby prohibited. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., That any person who 
violates Section one of this act shall be deemed guilty of a mis- 
demeanor and on conviction shall be fined in the sum of not less 
than Ten ($10.00) Dollars nor more than One Hundred ($100.00) 
Dollars, or shall be imprisoned for not less than Ten (10) days 
nor more than three (3) months, or both at the discretion of the 
Court. 

ACT No. 52 OF 1918. 

An Act to provide for the acceptance of the benefits of an Act 
passed by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America, in Congress assembled, to pro- 
vide for the promotion of vocational education. 
Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 
State of Louisiana, That the State of Louisiana hereby accepts 
all of the provisions and the benefits of an act passed by the 
Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of 
America, in Congress assembled, entitled, "An Act to provide 
for the promotion of vocational education; to provide for co- 
operation with the States in the promotion of such education in 
agriculture and the trades and industries; to provide for co- 
operation with the States in the preparation of teachers of 
vocational subjects; and to appropriate money and regulate its 
expenditure," approved February twenty-third, nineteen hun- 
dred and seventeen. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, etc., That the State Treas- 
urer is hereby constituted and appointed the custodian of the 
moneys paid to the State of Louisiana for vocational education, 
under the provisions of such act, and such moneys shall be paid 
out in the manner provided by such act for the purposes therein 
specified. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, etc.. That the State Board 
of Education of the State of Louisiana, together with representa- 
tives of the State Federation of Labor, to be named by the 



205 



Governor, is hereby designated as the State Board for the pur- 
pose of carrying into effect the provisions of such act, and is 
hereby authorized and directed to cooperate with the Federal 
Board for Vocational Education in the administration and en- 
forcement of its provisions and to perform such official acts and 
exercise such powers as may be necessary to entitle the State to 
receive its benefits. 

Section 4. Be it further enacted, etc., That the State Board 
of Education, together with the representatives of the Federa- 
tion of. Labor shall have full power to represent the State in 
any and all matters in reference to the expenditure, distribution 
and disbursement of funds received from the United States 
Government in said State and to appropriate and use said moneys 
in whatever way will in its discretion best subserve the interests 
of the State and carry out the spirit and intent of said act of 
Congress in conformity with its provisions. 

Section 5. Be it further enacted, etc.. That such Board is 
hereby authorized to make such expenditures for the actual 
expenses of the Board for the salaries of assistants and for such 
office and other expenses as in the judgment of the Board are 
necessary to the proper administration of this Act. 

Section 6. Be it further enacted, etc.. That all laws and parts 
of laws in conflict with the provisions of this Act be and the 
same are hereby repealed. 



206 

APPROPRIATIONS FOR PUBLIC SCHOOL 
PURPOSES. 

For the years ending 1919 1920 

Louisiana State University $ 171,750 $ 183,500 

Louisiana State Normal School 93,000 98,000 

Louisiana Industrial Institute 81,050 87,000 

Southwestern Louisiana Industrial In- 
stitute 55,000 75,000 

Southern University (for colored) 16,500 40,000 

State School for the Blind 21,412.75 26,101.60 

State School for the Deaf 47,850 45,350 

Louisiana Training Institute (Monroe) 38,500 23,500 
For the support of the free public 

schools. 1,200,000 1,200,000 

For salary of State Superintendent of 

Public Education 5,000 5,000 

Office expenses, State Superintendent 

of Public Education 4,000 4,000 

For traveling expenses for State Super- 
intendent and inspectors 5,300 • 5,300 

For salary of chief clerk in Department 

of Education 1,800 1,800 

For salary of assistant clerk in office 

of Department of Education 1,500 1,500 

For per diem and traveling expenses of 
members of State Board of Educa- 
tion 300 300 

For salary of High School Inspector. . 3,000 . 3,000 

For salary of Rural School Inspector . . 3,000 3,000 
For salary of one assistant to Rural 

School Inspector , 2,500 2,500 

For support of summer schools 4,000 4,000 



INDEX 

CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS 

Page. 

Amendment, Constitutional, relative to the State Educational * 

Institutions and their maintenance (A. 48, 1918) 17 

Amendment, Constitutional, relative to limiting the rate of State, 
Parish, Municipal, Public Board, and special taxation (A. 191, 

1918) 18 

Amendment, Constitutional, relative to support of the Louisiana 
State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, 
Louisiana State Normal School, Louisiana Industrial Insti- 
tute, Southwestern Louisiana Industrial Institute (A. 217,^1918) 20 
Amendment, Constitutional, requiring each parish and the City of 
New Orleans to levy annually a tax for the support of public 
schools in each parish and in the said city (A. 218, 1918) .... 20 
Amendment, Constitutional, relative to levying a special State tax 
not exceeding one and one-half (1%) mills on the dollar for 

the benefit of public education (A. 226', 1918) 22 

Apportionment of funds, free school 9 

A. & M. College, debt due 13 

Board of Education, State 9 

Boards, parish school 9 

Books, school, indigent pupils 13 

Bonds, school, special taxes 15 

Charitable institutions, or educational 13 

Debt due, Seminary Fund 13 

Debt due, A. & M. College 13 

Education, State Board of 9 

Educational or charitable institutions 13 

Educational institutions, exempt from taxation 8 

Elections, special school tax 18 

Eligibility to office 14 

Enumeration, provided for 9 

Establishment, educational institutions. 13 

Exempt from taxation, educational institutions 8 

Free schools, apportionment of fund 9 

Free school books 13 

Free school fund 10-11 

French 10 

Funds, apportionment 9 

Funds, private and sectarian 10 

Funds, school 10-11 

Funds, Seminary, debt due 13 

Indigent pupils, school books 13 

Industrial Institute, Louisiana 18 

Inheritance tax 14 

Institutions, educational 13 

Interest, due to townships 12 

Legislative power, limitation of 8 

Limitation of legislative power 8 

Limitation of state tax 8-9 

Louisiana Industrial Institute 18 

Louisiana State University 6, 7, 11 

Louisiana State University, debt due 13 

Louisiana State Normal School 12 



Page. 

Normal School, liouisiana State ^ 12 

Office, eligibility to 14 

Parish superintendent 2,10 

Police Jury tax 21 

Poll tax 8 

Powers, limitation of legislative 8 

Private and sectarian schools 10 

Public schools, races separated 9 

Pupils, indigent, school books 13 

Religion, financial aid 8-10 

Religion, no discrimination 5 

School age 9 

School bonds, special taxes 15 

School books, indigent pupils 13 

Schools, free, apportionment of funds 9 

School funds 9 

School funds, apportionment 9 

School tax, vote of taxpayers 8 

Seminary fund, debt due 13 

Southern University IS 

Special school taxes 15 

Special taxes, limitation of 14 

Special taxes, school bonds 15 

State Board of Education 9 

State Normal School of Louisiana 12 

S'tate Superintendent of Education 9 

State tax, limitation of 8.9 

State University, Louisiana 11 

Superintendent, parish 9 

Superintendent, State 9 

Taxation, exempt from 8 

Tax, inheritance 14 

Tax, poll 8 

Tax, school, vote of taxpayers 8 

Taxes, special, school bonds 15 

Three mill tax 18 

Townships, interest due 12 

Tulane University 12 

University, Louisiana State 11 

LEGISLATIVE PROVISIONS. 

A 

Accepting and regulating donations 32 

Accounts, State Treasurer 69 

Adoption of textbooks 125 

Adult illiteracy 144 

Agriculture and home economics 87 

Annual report of parish superintendent 136 

Annulling sale, sixteenth sections 92 

Appropriations for educational purposes 206 

Assessors' fees, school taxes 33 

Attendance, children may attend out of district 131 

Attendance, comipulsory 121-123 

Attendance, compulsory, (Orleans) 69 

Attendance, another parish 131 

Attendance, minimum ' 130 

Attorney General, duty -. 135 

Attorney, special 97 



B 

Page. 

Bird Day, established 38 

Board, State Affairs, its creation, duties, powers, etc lSO-187 

Board of Education, State, power to renew and extend teachers' 

certiflcates 139-140 

Bonds forfeited 52 

Bonds, regulations for same 78 

Bonds, school 52, 79-81 

Borrow money, authority to 145 

Budget of revenues 143 

Buildings, lighting 117 

Buildings, disinfecting 118 

c 

Certificates, teachers' 138-141 

Certiflcates, revocable 140 

Certificates, extended and renswed, by State Board of Education 140 

Children, protection of 178-179 

Clerk of Court, report on poll taxes 87 

Collecting notes, sixteenth sections 92-93 

Columbus Day 42 

Commissions for institutions, Deaf, Dumb, Blind, Negro 123 

Communicable diseases 118 

Compensation of attorneys 93 

Compensation of attorneys, special 97 

Compulsory attendance, Orleans 69 

Compulsory attendance, State 121-123 

Contracts, teachers' 140 

Control of State Schools, Deaf and Dumb, Blind 156 

Conventions 135 

Current school fund 101-102 

D 

Deducting fees of witnesses and jurors for poll tax 87 

Demonstration farms 56 

Deposit of school funds 61 

Diplomas, granting of by Xavier University 196 

Diplomas, granting of by St. Vincent's Academy 197 

Diplomas, conferring of (A. 173, 1918)...; 179-180 

Diplomas approved ._ 139 

Diseases, communicable 118 

Disbursement parish school funds 143 

Disinfecting school buildings 118 

Disloyalty, to United States, United States Flag, Stand- 
ard, etc 187-189, 165-167 

District Attorney, counsel for parish board 129 

Dismissal of teachers 138 

Donations, accepting and regulating 32 

Donations, how made 32 

Donations, administration of, how affected; trustees, how ap- 
pointed, their duties, etc 32-33 

Doors of schoolhouses shall swing outward 40 

Draining school premises 118 

Drinking cups 118 

Drinking water 118 

Duties, State Superintendent 133-135 

Duties, superintendent, Orleans 150 

Duties, parish superintendent 135-137 



• E, 

Page. 

Election, special school tax 71 

Election, sale school lands 88 

Eligibility of women for office 123-124 

Enforcement, course of study and regulations 141 

Enrollment, school 130 

Enumeration of school children 143 

Eradication of illiteracy 144 

Examining Committee 138 

Examination of teachers 138-139 

Exemption from examinations 138 

Exemptions in Act 120, Orleans 145 

Experimental farms 59 

Expropriations, powers of school board 33-34 

Eyes of pupils, testing 41 

F 

Farmers, cooperative demonstration work 56 

Farms, experimental 59 

Pees, assessors 33 

Fees, examining committee 139 

Fees, tax collectors 30-31 

Filling vacancies on school boards 155-156 

Fiscal agency: ■ 

Advertisement for bids 62-63 

Bonds required 64-65 

Interest 66-67 

Local funds 62 

• State funds 61-62 

Loan money 65 

Security 65 

Fixing capital, due townships 94 

Flag, official 56 

Flag, of United States and of Louisiana, punishment for desecra- 
tion, mutilation, improper use, etc. (Act 220, 1918) 187-189 

Forfeited bonds 52 

Free passage, public ferries 130 

Free school funds 101 

Funds, deposit, fiscal agency 61-62 

Funds of towns on recision of charters 101 

G 

Gambling, prohibited within four miles of Springfield Consoli- 
dated School, Livingston parish .203-204 

Gambling, prohibited within five miles of Winnsboro High School 178 
Gambling, prohibited within five miles of the Castor High School 180 

Garbage cans 119 

German language, cannot be taught in Louisiana schools (A. 114, 

1918) 164-165 

Graduates exempted from examinations 138 

Gretna Academy 152-154 

Girls, State Home for (A. 143, 1918) 176-178 

H 

Health certificates' teachers' 117 

Hearing and sight, tested 41 

High schools, creation of 129 

Home economics and agriculture 87 

Home, State Home for Girls (A. 143, 1918) 176-178 



I 

Page. 

Indemnity lands, sale of 98 

Indemnity lands 58 

Inheritance tax: 

Conditions necessary for transfer of money, etc 24-25 

Thirty days' notice to Inheritance Tax Collector 28 

Attorney's compensation 31 

Costs 32 

Creditors : 29 

Delinquent penalty 31 

Duty of executor 25-26 

Duty of heir 26-27 

Executor 25 

Exemptions 24 

Jurisdiction 30 

Pay taxes, property may be Sold to 25 

Succession 24-25, 32 

Taking possession of succession 24-25 

Taxes to be deducted 25-26 

Tax collector's commission 30-31 

Unknown heirs 30 

Will 27-28 

Institute for Blind Ill 

Institute for Deaf and Dumb 111-112 

Institutes, teachers 137-138 

Inspectors, supervisors, etc 136 

Interest on U. S. deposit funds 70 

Intoxicating liquors 121 

J 

Jurors, fees deducted 87 

Jury duty - 87-88 

K 

Killing of game on school lands 120 

L 

Lake beds, sold for schools 94 

Lake Charles, divorced from parish 34-38 

Land, accruing to townships 91 

Lease of land, sixteenth section 95 

Lectures on sanitation 119 

Libraries, school, e"3tablished 38 

Light in school buildings 117 

Local school direr*ors 132 

Louisiana Institutt 'or Blind Ill 

Louisiana Institute for Deaf and Dumb Ill 

Louisiana Industrial Institute 109 

Louisiana Southwestern Industrial Institute 110 

Louisiana State Normal School. 107 

Louisiana State Ujilversity 103-106 

M 

Military instruction ; •. • • 152 

Minimum number of pupils 130 

Minutes of parish board meetings 128 



N 

Page. 

Number of pupils to constitute a school, minimum , 130 

New Orleans, City of, authorized to sell certain property belong- 
ing to said city for site of Delgado Central Trade School and 
for reconstruction of Hospital of the Benevolent and Protec- 
tive Order of Elks of the United States of America, respec- 
tively, etc. (A. 26, 1918) 197 

New Orleans, City of. Retirement Fund for Teachers (S. 7 of 

A. 116, amended by A. 263 of 1914, amended by A. 17 of 1918) 42-52 

o 

Oaths, administered by parish superintendent 137 

Office at parish seat, parish superintendent 135-137 

"Office, State Superintendent 132 

Official Journal 137 

Opinion of Attorney General, qualifications of voters 83-85 

Opinion of Attorney General — Sale of sixteenth section school 
lands by the parish school boards, duty of school board and 
of auditor in connection therewith, survey of said lands 
before sale, and provision for the foreclosure of mortgage 
to secure payment of notes, and provision for elections to 

authorize the sale of said lands 85-87 

Orleans schools: . 

Annual report of schools 149 

Budget of receipts and expenditures 143 

Commission Council, duty 151 

Compulsory school attendance 69 

Duties of board 147-150 

Duties of superintendent 135-136 

Election of teachers 148 

Enumeration of educables 150 

Examination of teachers 150 

Officers of board 146-147 

Organization of Board 147 

Secretary, duties of 147 

Teachers' Retirement Fund 42-52 

Textbooks, adoption of ,. 149 

Treasurer, duties of . . . 151 



Parish experimental farms 59 

Parish institutes, teachers 137-138 

Parish school boards: 

Appointment of assistant superintendent, supervisors, etc. 136 

Attorney 129 

Authority to borrow money 145 

Body corporate 127 

Contracts 128 

Duties 127 

EligibiUty 127 

Equal sessions for all schools 129 

Executive committee 127 

Ferries, free passage 130 

How elected 126 

Meetings 128 

Mileage and per diem 127 

Official Journal 137 

Reports 137 

Sale of school property 88, 89, 90, 9'l, 92, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99 



Page. 

School buildings, out of general fund 129 

Secretary 137 

Superintendent 147 

Title 146 

Vacancies 146 

Organization 146 

Parish superintendent: 

Annual report 136 

Bond 142 

Reports 137 

Records 137 

Removal 147 

Qualifications 135 

Salary 136 

Penalty for neglect of duty 136 

Right to administer oath 137 

Duties 135-137 

Cannot be otherwise employed 135 

Secretary of parish board 137 

Treasurer of parish board 142 

Plans of school buildings 116 

Police Juries, demonstration farms 59 

Police Juries, authority to defray expenses of young men grad- 
uates of high schools to attend L. S. U. (A. 41, 1918) 105,202 

Poll taxes 87 

Prescription of debts 101 

President of school board 127, 

President of school board, duties 132 

Price of seminary lands 101 

Prohibition of contracts with religious institutions 130-131 

Prosecution, sale of intoxicating liquors 121 

Protection, of children under seventeen years (A. 169, 1918) ... .178-179 

Punishment of school children 141 

Pupils, minimum number 130 

Q 

Qualification of voters, special tax , . . . . 72 

Quarterly report, parish superintendent 137 

Quarterly statement. Supervisor of Public Accounts 53 

« XV 

Reading circle books 138 

Records kept by superintendent and teachers 141 

Recovery of sixteenth sections 92-97 

Rental of sixteenth sections 144 

Regulations for the government of schools 125 

Religious schools, no state funds 130-131 

Report of clerk of court, poll taxes 87 

Report of parish superintendent and teachers 126, 141 

Report of State Superintendent 134-135 

Report of poll taxes by sheriff 155 

Report upon state institutions by State Superintendent 134 

Reports of principals and teachers 126, 141 

Reservation of school lands fOO 

Resolutions of State Board of Education, grade limitation 156-157 

Resolution, State Board of Education, requirem^ts for State 

Approval of High Schools and Junior High Schools 158-161 

Resolution, State Board of Education, requirements for high 

school teachers 161-162 

Retirement fund of teachers 42 



Page. 
Retirement fund, New Orleans teachers, (Section 7 of A. 116, 

amended by A. 263 of 1914, amended by A. 17 of 1918) 42-52 

Revenues, budget 143 

s 

Saint Vincent Academy, power to grant diplomas, (A. 23, 1918) . 197 

Salary, State Superintendent 133 

Salaries of parish superintendents 136. 

Salaries of teachers withheld 141 

Sale of school lands: 

Advertisement 88 

Annulling .-... 92 

Indemnity lands 98-99 

Interest on sixteenth section funds 91-92 

Lake beds 94 

Lease 95-97, 144 

Oil and mineral rights 95, 144 

Polls 88, 95-96 

Proceeds of sale 94 

Suits 98 

Survey 88 

Treasurer's commission 91 

Trespass 97 

Uninhabitable 90 

Sale of sixteentli sections divided by parish lines 91 

Sale of timber on sixteenth sections. .95-97, 144 

Sale of uninhabitable lands » 90-91 

Sale, certain property of City of New Orleans for site of Delgado 
Central Trades" School and Reconstruction of Hospital of the 
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks of the United States 

of America, respectively, etc. (A. 26, 1918) 197-201 

Unitary regulations of State Board of Health 116-119 

School boards, overlapping 126 

School boards. Attorney General counsel 135 

School bonds, regulation of same 78-79 

School children, enumeration 143-144 

School districts 131 

School districts in two parishes 131 

School district, how created (A. 81, 1918, to amend and re-enact 

S. 1 of A. 17, 1914) 119-120 

School funds: 

Current 70 

Free 101-102 

How applied 70 

How disbursed , 142 

-Special 70 

Special sources of revenues 102-103 

Transfer 114, 142 

Schoolhouses, establishing 129 

Schoolhouses, may be built out of General Fund 129-130 

School indemnity lands 98 

School lands, protection of game 120-121 

School libraries 38 

Sclj^ool budget 143 

School session daily 132 

School sites, expropriations 33-34 

School taxes, assessor's fees 33 

School training, for feeble-minded (A. 141, 1918) 167 

School treasurer, duties 142 



Page. 

Sheriff's fees 55 

Sight and hearing 41 

Sixteenth sections: 

Annulling sale for non-payment 92 

Auditor's duty, collecting notes 92-93 

Auditor's duty, fixing capital due townships 94 

Authority to rent 97, 144 

Authority to sell oil and mineral rights 97, 144 

Compensation of attorneys 97-98 

Lease of lands 96, 144 

Lease of oil and mineral rights 95-96,144 

Recovery of sixteenth sections 97 

Right of way over lands 89 

Sale of uninhabitable lands 90 

Sale of sixteenth sections 91, 144 

Sale of swamp lands 90-91 

Scrip issue 93 

Survey of land 88 

Statement of Attorney General and Registrar 55-56 

Showing location 99-100 

Vote against sale (S. 59 of A. 120, 1916, amended by 

A. 142, 1918) 95 

Smith-Hughes Bill .' .154-155 

Special sources of revenue 102-103 

Special school tax elections: 

Ballots 73-74 

Challenging votes 73 

Cornmissioners 75 

District comprising territory in two or more parishes. . . 131 

Duty of Registrar 73 

Election returns 77 

Incontestable after sixty days 77 

Limitation 71-78 

Majority in nuinber and amount 78 

Opinions of Attorney General 82-87 

Polls ; 76 

Publication 71-72 

Purposes • . . 71 

Procedure 75-76 

Qualifications of voters 72 

School board has charge 71 

Si^itting on schoolhouse floor 41-117 

State Board of Education: 

General authority 124-125 

Duties 125-126 

Organization 125 

Special supervisors 133 

State Home for Girls (A. 143, 1918) 176-178 

Statements, biennial 177 

State Superintendent of Education: 

Duties 132-135 

Salary 133 

Shall report neglect of duty on the part of school officials 

and improper use of funds 135 

Important circular letters by 3-7 

State Treasurer, school accounts 69-70 

Seminary funds 101 

Southern University, change of location 56-57 

State Schools for Blind, Deaf and Dumb 111-112 

Subjects to be taught 104 



Page. 

Supervisor of Public Accounts 53 

Supervisors of schools, employment 136 

Supreme Court decisions: 

1. All school funds handled by parish board 114 

2. Discipline, authority of teacher 113 

3. District attorneys, no fee 113 

4. Members of partnership vote on special elections.... 114 

5. Property exempt from taxation pays no special school 

taxes , 114 

6. Persons who have sold their property can not vote it 

in special tax elections 114 

7. Right of widows to vote community property in 

special elections 115 

8. Schoolhouses cannot be used as theatres 115 

Suspension of pupils 141 

Sweeping floors of school buildings 116-117 

T 

Tax, annual license on timber, turpentine, and minerals, oil, gas, 

sulphur, salt, etc. (A. 20 of Extra Session, 1918) 190 

Tax collectors, fees 55 

Tax, inheritance 24 

Teachers' certificates • 138, 

Teachers' contracts 140 

Teachers' examinations 138-140 

Teachers' authority 113, 141 

Teachers, health certificates 117 

Teachers, dismissal of 138 

Teachers, institutes 137-138 

Teachers, employed by parish board 140 

Teachers, must be qualified 140 

Teachers, Retirement Fund 42 

Teachers, Retirement 'Fund for New Orleans teachers (S. 7 of 

A. 116, amended by A. 263 of 1914, amended by A. 17 of 1918) 42 

Teacher-Training Courses 107-141 

Temperance, teaching of 119, 132 

Testing eyes of pupils 41-42 

Training, School for feeble-minded (A. 141, 1918) 167 

Transfer of school funds 114, 131, 142 

Transportation of children 144 

Treasurer 54,92, 142, 151 

Treasurer's commission 91 

Trespassing on sixteenth sections 97 

Textbooks, adoption of 125-126 

Tuition fees 106-108 

u 

Uniformity of textbooks 125 

V 

Vacancies in parish school board 126 

Vaccination of pupils 117-118 

Ventilation of school buildings 117 

Vocational education (Smith-Hughes Bill) 154-155 

Vocational education, shall be fostered 154, 204 

Vocational education, acceptance of the benefits of an act passed 

by Congress to promote vocationar education (A. 52, 1918) . .204-205 

X 

Xavier University, power to grant diplontas (A. 22, 1918) 190-197 



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